


Fifty Seventh

by CzarBetchimov



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:22:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 50,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25740526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CzarBetchimov/pseuds/CzarBetchimov
Summary: Life among the workforce of your district's factories already has its own challenges, and for eighteen-year-old Alyssa Rosseau, becoming a tribute wasn't readily considered one, until it suddenly became reality. With the fight for her own life now pushed to a bitter and glorified extreme, the horrors within the upcoming arena will test just how many lives she can handle taking, and losing, in the fifty seventh year of Panem's Hunger Games.Overhauled and reuploaded.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Dear reader;
> 
> Thank you for taking the time to venture upon this twisted future tale, and I hope you enjoy the mayhem! This story is a personal fan interpretation of an earlier year of Panem's Hunger Games that, after thorough research (at the time), has not been mentioned in any part of the original trilogy of books. As such, there are a variety of creative liberties taken with some aspects of the story, and occasions where the story references stuff from both the books and the movies in a unique blend. This is entirely purposeful because I like to imagine the universe co-existing regardless of the medium that is enjoyed on.
> 
> This story, typical of the source material it derives from (belonging to S. Collins and Lionsgate and several others), is not for the faint of heart. Read at your own comfort, and, if you can, enjoy!
> 
> ~ C. Betchimov

_Maybe if I just pretend this isn't actually happening... I'll just wake up or something._

Chest throbbing with an ache of helplessness, mind churning over the same series of recent events in an endless cycle, a reddish-auburn-haired young woman sat alone on a plushly-padded seat, plainly dressed in faded denim work clothing and staring down at the floor. With the first day of travel by hover-train passing in a head-spinning blur, the brick and steel landscape of her home district was a distant memory as the sleek machine floated effortlessly down an endless length of track, and a recurring contemplation of the fate ahead prodded at her insides, keeping away any semblance of appetite.

_Sure. I'm wide awake. This would be a vivid dream, wouldn't it? A nightmare, really. Kinda thought that accident years ago was about as bad as things could get, and now..._

Glancing upward from the patterned blue carpeting beneath her worn and knotted work boots, she squinted from the wayward rays of the sun sinking into the horizon, streaming through the windows on the opposite side of the compartment.

_Hardly a day ago, everything changed... For the worse, of course. Being reaped isn't exactly one of those life developments you daydream about... But when it happens to someone else, you wonder about them for a while. How they suddenly leave their family and problems behind... With a free ticket to ride to the Capitol. Getting that celebrity treatment everyone whispers about. And then..._

Imagining flashes of previous year's tributes suffering a variety of unsettling ends on television, a hefty breath parted her lips, brow furrowing with a shiver.

_...And then, suddenly, all of that is happening to you._

Attention flitting aside from the innocent tinkle of unused dishware shifting, feeling her body tilt in a perceptible lean, her eyes wandered further across her shoulder, seeing glimpses of the train's movements through a broad curve.

_Its funny, in a screwy way. You think you've got things sort of figured out, and you're almost old enough... Almost. I'm eighteen. Couple more months and I'd be nineteen, and lose eligibility. But nooo. Hell no. Life just throws something else at you. Makes your name get called out in public... At the hall of justice._

Swallowing from the eerie rumble of a voice booming from loudspeakers in front of a packed courtyard, echoing across her memory, she sat back, head bouncing against the window glass behind.

_Of course, every district has two to offer, and that blonde-haired boy that wandered up beside me didn't look too pleased about the predicament either. Not that anybody ever looks forward to any part of this... Nightmare._

Swallowing, stomach empty and churning, she closed her eyes.

_Maybe if I fall asleep, I'll wake up back in District Three again._

Grimacing, with no fatigue to be found, her eyelids reluctantly lifted open, met with the same excessive and garish decor of the train's interior again.

_Yeah. Right._

* * *

Staring out of a dark window, down on the floor of a private berth with all lights turned off, the same young woman remained in a tight huddle against a wall, keeping her legs within her arms as her stomach gnawed at her with ongoing discomfort.

_Can't exactly wake up from something when you can't even fall asleep... So maybe I'll just stop pretending I'm not heading to my doom._

Seeing a spare few glints of stars vanish from a sudden swipe of further darkness, the roar of a tunnel passage met her ears, and her chin sank onto her knee.

_I'll just go ahead and accept... That I'm now a tribute for this year's Hunger Games. Not like I can even do anything about it anyway. They already dragged me onto this train... And we're doing two hundred miles per hour away from Three. I'm sure we're going to stop in the Capitol tomorrow morning... And get right into the stuff everyone talks about, but nobody sees._

Releasing a breath from her nose, she waited until the tunnel vanished, and the night sky reappeared beyond swift passes of silhouetted foliage.

_Gearing up for this year's spectacular event, where everybody in the outer resource regions watches as their kids kill and get killed, with huge parties and fanfare in the Capitol... And quiet mourning and anger everywhere else. A public spectacle of bloodshed because everybody tried to kill everybody else in a war sixty years ago, and a couple of wackjobs wanted to make sure we didn't forget about it for a while... So even with our own societal shortcomings already happening, we live on, sending away tributes every year and hoping the odds are in their favor. Hoping they survive, win, and come home. Hoping, even when it seems so pointless in the end._

Turning aside, tucking her chin against her knee with an increasing ache in her back, her arms tightened.

_Even so... I hope I can win. I'd like to go back home someday and just hide. Never have to deal with any of this again... Ugh. I hate that I'm already thinking like this... Maybe I shouldn't bother. The likelihood of my sorry butt surviving... Who knows. Maybe the end will just come quick. Then this nightmare and everything else will just suddenly be over and I'll just cease to exist and never have to worry about anything anymore because I'll be dead._

Eyes squeezing shut, unable to prevent a spare few tears from working free and beading down her cheeks, she sat in continued silence.

_Maybe that's it. I should just tell myself I'm already dead. Then this will be easier... And the improbable survival will be some kind of bonus. That glimmer of hope, right?_

Shaking her head, her damp chin drug along her kneecap once more.

_Yeah. Right._

* * *

Seated at a lengthy dining table, with all unfamiliar guests around her eating and drinking in continued silence, a strange returning view of the sun on the opposite horizon repeatedly forced the young woman to squint as she consumed a plate of eggs. Alternating between light and darkness attacking her vision, she remained in a downward focus at the dining table's sumptuous offerings.

_Well, if anything... The food is amazing. Probably the best breakfast I've ever had in my life, I think. Just keep stuffing my face and I won't have to talk to anyone either. So far its been nice and quiet, and -_

"Whoa."

Attention rising from the yet-unheard voice of the male tribute seated nearby, her green eyes wandered across to the window, met with the shimmering expanse of a reservoir of water. Just beyond, however, the utensils in the hands of both teenagers drew to a halt as their visions latched to the swiftly approaching skyline of the Capitol city itself.

_Oh. Look at that._

Tilting into a sweeping curve, only to be swallowed by the illuminated blur of rock walls just outside the window, their eyes suddenly took in a sight of many hundreds of people gathered in a liquid mass of color and motion, screaming and shouting as the train swiftly decelerated alongside an elevated platform, forcing the occupants into a forward lean from the train's magnetic braking forces.

Peeking at the male tribute as he hesitantly stood to his feet, stepping aside from his chair and looking out of the window, she watched with apprehension as he offered several waves to the station's hysterical throngs. Then, the shove of her district mentor's hand against her shoulder snapped her attention back to the middle-aged woman with a furrow of her brow.

"Don't look at me like that, young lady. He's got the right idea."

"Miss Alyssa, you should show some appreciation for your new fans. They'll be the ones rooting for you, you know!"

Looking back and forth with tosses of her shoulder-length hair, she set the dining utensils onto the plate, and with several indignant scoots of her seat back, stood to her feet and whirled around, swallowing the traces of food remaining in her mouth.

_Rooting... For my demise. They're awfully noisy, these..._

Eyes widening with a suddenly gain of visual clarity, the eclectic appearances of the excited populace beyond swiftly left her mouth agape.

_...Freaky, people._

* * *

_Ouch._

Laying still, body feeling quite raw from several rounds of forceful, systematic manicuring, Alyssa eyed the ceiling above in a daze of dull pains.

_Well now I'm industrially clean... And hairless. These freaks ripped off everything that couldn't be brushed, and... Ugh. That's someone else, isn't it? Seeing my naked ass laying here. I think my parents were the only people to see me like this... And now these stylists are looking over all of me. Go look at yourselves. I don't know how you go about daily life looking like... Things. I don't even know how to describe what I've been seeing because I can barely even... I thought the citizens outside were as weird as it gets... But these people are a special level of insane, with way too much free time for self-decoration._

Eyes meeting another of the stylists, she rolled her eyes, turning her head away in avoidance.

_Still something on me that needs fixing... Go ahead. I'll just lay here while you... Are those... Ouch! Damn you... Anything else?_

Closing her eyes, hearing footsteps fade, breath parted her lips in a huff.

_No? Good. Go away and give me my clothes back._

* * *

_...And here I thought this couldn't get worse._

Eying the folds and sleeves of a strange silver and light blue outfit with great reluctance, walking among a cluster of staff milling around a line of awaiting chariots, fleeting glimpses of other tributes revealed a broad variety of physical statures and facial expressions, predominantly embarrassed and unimpressed with their own outfits.

_I'm sure this is about the only time our feelings are mutual about something... We look ridiculous, and now we're about to take a stroll in the already ridiculous public. This is stupid and awkward, and..._

Eyes meeting those of her fellow tribute mere moments after he stepped up into position onto the single-axle chariot, she gripped the vehicle's side wall as she rose aloft into it, exhaling from the effort, and then looking up towards the broad roof of the concrete structure over them all.

_...I just realized I'm right among all of my future opponents._

Lurching forward in a cloud of hoof beats and loud spoked wheels, hasty shouts of advice and positivity were offered to them, swiftly drowned out by the steadily rising roar of excitement only seconds away outside, drawing all attentions forward to the glare of sunlight beyond.

_Maybe dressing everyone like this makes sure that everyone involved feels awkward... Leveling things a little. Probably not, actually. I'm not sure._

Clutching the chariot as the structure's roof and walls disappeared, the strong glare of sunshine gave way to towering concrete structures and a startlingly gigantic mass of exuberant populace making more noise than could be believed, lining the grand stands along the avenue stretching straight into the distance as the teams of horses and tributes were brought forth through the public for the first time.

_Down in the depths of the Capitol... Looking like a complete moron, and everybody loves it._

Looking aside to the blonde male standing beside herself, waiting until he noticed her, he offered a simple shrug, seemingly unfazed by the chaos around them.

"You seem fine with this!"

"I'm not, but its still pretty amazing!"

Squinting at him as his eyes wandered away, only to return to her again, his brow rose.

"...You don't think so?!"

"These people are cheering for our deaths!"

"I'm sure they'll cheer when one of us survives!"

"If one of us survives!"

Seeing an expected eye roll, the fleeting smile that followed startled her slightly.

"Then lets make sure one of us does, for District Three!"

* * *

Sitting with a full stomach on the impossibly soft comforter adorning a wide bed, in the middle of an even-wider bedroom, Alyssa stared out of a broad glass window. Met with countless lights illuminating the roofs and facades of grand buildings, soaring with height and finesse amongst the dark of night, her heart beat steadily, still pining for a distant home.

_District Three. All those lovely factories and chimneys... Nothing like this wild... Metropolis, I think they call it? And all these huge mountains around it... What a weird place, to say the least. Who knew this was what it was like? TV broadcasts barely show anything, so everyone just guesses... And yet, here I am. Living, not guessing._

Gripping the plush fabric with hands curling into fists, she listened to the odd little sounds of her own digestion.

_Living for now... Until I'm not. Living it up with all this delicious food. So much of it. Never been spoiled for choice in industrial squalor... What a terrible joke. How come all this food and wealth never makes it back home? If this was the kind of disparity we had sixty years ago... I can see why the districts or whoever waged war. The extreme richness here is shocking and arrogant... Which is why they're spoiling all the hungry kids they scooped together, huh? Make them forget about what they came from, just long enough that once they're weaned off it, they all kill each other out of anger and desperation. Driven nuts by the absence of the amazing stuff they glimpsed._

Eyelids settling shut, she sank back, finally flopping back onto the bedding with a thump.

_They... By that I mean we. Us. This year's group. Whatever. Now that I'm in the middle of it, thinking about all of it... I'm starting to realize how this nightmare works._

Turning aside, initial reluctance faded as she nuzzled the thick cloth beneath her head.

_How dare you be... Comfortable._


	2. Chapter 2

Stirring peacefully, slowly discerning the thick folds of a blanket, pillows, and then the sharper ridges of an ornately carved and stained wood backboard, Alyssa's head lifted, only to find herself looking about at her lavish bedroom surroundings with immediate confusion.

_What..._

Shoving herself upright, finally turning and rediscovering the large window on one end, her heart plummeted as a view of the Capitol's stark and imposing concrete architecture blasted her vision with the brightness of the morning sunlight.

_...Oh, didn't think I'd wake up to this. Didn't hope to, actually. But I did._

Staring at the sight with hazy displeasure, she then tore herself away and began crawling out of bed in the opposite direction. Shuffling onto her feet and stretching for an increasingly longer moment, she plodded into an achy lean forward and tiptoed into the bathroom, and after a turn, was greeted by herself in the mirror. Evaluating the girl staring back with disheveled auburn hair, she stared at the final product of the Capitol's stylists, magically changing her from a tired teenage girl into what was deemed a 'majestic young woman.'

_Hmm... Attempting beauty through alteration. Isn't that what these people are doing to themselves?_

Clambering up onto the sink's polished stone counter, she ran her right hand up into her hair behind her ear, letting it pull between her fingers with several passes of dextral curiosity.

_You're nice and soft now..._

Hand lowering and settling onto the faucet beneath, a stream of water suddenly gushed out from the spout, and after a startled pause of discovery, it shut back off, and she hesitantly tapped the curved pipe again, watching with fascination as the steady stream of water reappeared.

_Huh._

Cupping her hand beneath the lukewarm water, and then rubbing her wet fingers across her eyes with several swipes, she blinked repeatedly.

_Fancy sink... Did we develop part of this?_

Eyes rising back for another glance at the girl in the mirror, staring back with a soft, glowing complexion, she squinted, only for a double-knock on a nearby door to register.

"Yes?"

"Breakfast is in ten minutes."

Met with the gruff female voice of her mentor, she leaned towards the adjacent doorway in response.

"I'll be there." _But not because you said so..._

* * *

**Tribute Training Center; Day 01, 8:57a.m.**

Meandering down the last of several stark passages, with her fellow tribute by her side and their ungainly middle-aged mentor steps ahead, Alyssa peeked around the older woman as they wound around another corner of the underground facility. Sporting a fitted athletic outfit and ongoing curiosity about the frequently mentioned training facility, she crossed her arms as they entered another length of hallway.

"Alright you two. As we've said several times now, try and absorb as much as you can. The more you know how to do, the longer you might survive."

With a shared glance back at both of the teens, the mentor then shoved a set of double doors open, motioning them onward. Immediately trading glances of uncertainty, the blonde male stepped forward first, and Alyssa hesitantly followed his path. Mere seconds after passing through the doorway, however, an exhale of discomfort left her lungs as they approached the small crowd ahead, both of them realizing they were being actively scrutinized by several other tributes, only for the process to repeat as several more pairs appeared from different directions, turning the heads of a slowly increasing cluster of silent opponents.

Allowing a final period of awkward glances to ensue, a young ebony woman standing before all of them cleared her throat, drawing all eyes forward.

"In a few days, twenty three of you will be dead."

A variety of smiles and frowns of varying levels appeared on nearby complexions, and Alyssa crossed her arms.

_That's... Thanks for the reminder, lady. I think we're al-_

"...But one of you will be alive. Who that is, depends on your determination to survive, but also on your own survival skills. While many of you may want to acquire a weapon right away, keep in mind the danger of ignoring yourself as time goes on. Another tribute may not kill you, but environmental and biological hazards, dehydration and infection, can result in your demise just as easily. Don't avoid learning something new just because you've never done it before, or think you won't encounter a situation requiring it... Even the most mundane of tasks could save your life in the arena."

* * *

_Weapons training... Sure is obvious who's done this before._

Watching from afar as one of the career tributes maneuvered a sword-like baton against a sparring opponent, blocking several attempted strikes, Alyssa carefully resumed tapping on pairs of illuminated buttons on a screen, drawn initially to one of the few computerized offerings in the training center.

_Pretty sure your average teenage child shouldn't know combat already. But nobody cares if they do. All the more psychotic... To those of us that learned more important things in our urban lives. Like, um, development of electromechanical products that everyone relies on and doesn't think about. Stuff that my factory back home designs and cranks out with my help... But whatever. That doesn't matter now, does it?_

Glancing back from the audible grunts of exertion from the tribute, her eyes narrowed.

_I'm sure I should practice that too. Get my hands on everything here. That way maybe I'll have a chance._

"Time's up."

Blinking, attention whirling aside to the blonde male from her district, she blinked.

"What?"

"The timer ran out."

Watching him point casually to the screen, with a slowly blinking **'00:00'** on the top, she leaned back with a cross of her arms.

"Yeah, well, first day, so whatever. I'm sure I'll end up back here again."

"Probably."

"You going to do this?"

"Later on. Was trying some other stations first. You should too."

Chin rising slightly from the patient expression on his face, she exhaled.

"Maybe I will."

"Anyway, we've been around each other a bit since the reaping, but I feel like we haven't formally introduced ourselves."

"We haven't." _Even though they said our names out loud and we shook hands... I don't even remember._

"In that case..."

Sticking out his hand, her eyes went down to the gesture, and then back up to his face with hesitance.

"Oliver, _Allen_."

"Alyssa... _Rosseau_."

Meeting his fingers and cautiously shaking his hand, she exhaled as his arm retracted to his side with ease.

"You, _um_ , worked back in Three, I imagine?"

"Yep. Factory fourteen, over by the truss bridges."

"Oh. I've been in factory eight for a while. West side of the river."

"Well that explains why we've probably never met until now."

"Yeah."

"I feel like I've wandered on the west side but... Oh well."

"I've been on the approaches of those bridges, but not across one. Really don't like being on the plate girder parts when trains are passing."

"Clearance is a little tight, yeah."

Humming with amusement from mutual memories, they looked around in shared glances, and Alyssa crossed her arms as he put his hand on his hip.

"Anyway... Not going to keep you for too long, just figured it would make sense to be on speaking terms since we're on the same team."

"Yeah. Sorry about not saying anything. Been kind of shell-shocked about all of this."

"I hear you. Was so close to getting out of it. My birthday is in three months."

_Ohh..._ "Are you eighteen?"

"Unfortunately."

"Same. I guess we both have bad luck with this."

Hearing a sigh issue from his lungs, she watched his shoulders rise in a shrug.

"Yeah... I'm just glad it wasn't one of my sisters though."

_Sisters. Wait..._ "You have sisters?"

"Mmhm. Two younger ones. They mean the world to me and I dreaded the thought of one of them being reaped... So instead it ended up being me. At least they should be safe for a while now."

Swallowing from the seemingly calm revelation, Alyssa looked away.

_Siblings... And they're about to be without one._

"Do you have any siblings?"

"None."

"Only child?"

"Yeah."

"I guess there's less to lose in a sense... You're fortunate."

Rolling her eyes, she leaned back slightly, arms remaining crossed.

_That's what you think._ "Fortunate or not... None of it matters if you don't make it home in the end."

"True... I don't like considering who and what we're up against but there's always that crazy chance, right?"

Head tilting towards the blinking zeros of the touchscreen beside them, she bit her lip.

_Yeah._ "Right."

* * *

**10:17p.m.**

Laying in a mass of sheets, staring out of the window at slowly strobing lights on the top corners of several high-rise structures, Alyssa's parted lips allowed in recurring breaths of clean, conditioned air in the late evening.

_Sisters. He's got family and a lot more to fight for than me..._

Vision flitting aside from the sight of innocent younger faces standing beside Oliver, her hands tightened.

_Didn't say how young they were either... Probably best if he doesn't. I don't want to even consider the possibilities._

Eyes closing, clouded with increasing concern, she sighed heavily.

_Damn. What if I end up killing him? Then I'd have to deal with that for however long I live... Which isn't to say... What if he kills me? Who would have bigger regrets? I think I would. I'm just some nobody he's forced to be acquainted with now because we're from the same place... And he's already made a point of politely introducing himself... But should we avoid each other when it comes down to it? Or maybe we should work together to better our own chances... I like the sound of that better. Better to be a team than being hunted alone... I think._

Grimacing, heart beating with a storm of imagined terrors, she buried her face into the pillow beneath her head, rolling over bodily and holding her breath against the soft cushion.

_Dammit. This is going to be an ongoing issue... And I really don't want to imagine the end result._

* * *

**Tribute Training Center; Day 02, 9:21a.m.**

Brushing a tuft of auburn hair aside from her face and jumping up, a grunt left Alyssa's throat as she clutched two large rings suspended in the air, arms slackening from the sudden introduction of her own weight.

_Athleticism first... Weapons can come later._

Moving her legs back and forth to gain swinging momentum, she reached forward, grasping the next ring, and with a timed release of her other arm, began into a alternating sequence of grabbing and swinging forward, gaining a swift pace forward through the Gauntlet, leaving behind small clatters of chains.

_There we go, just f-_

Suddenly, her fingers miscalculated and swept low of one, and she found herself swinging backwards holding nothing, held up by one hand. Blinking with alarm, her arm shot up, clutching the same ring she was on, and in desperation, she swung her foot out and caught it in the last one just beyond.

_You, damn, thing..._

With a grunt, she lifted her other leg, carefully brought the middle ring closer with her knee, and with a sharp grunt, grabbed it, released her foot and swung back, moving forward a second later and barely getting hold of the last ring before letting go again, and landing onto the elevated platform on the other side with a stumble.

_Oookay. That was bad... We'll try this again later._

Wasting no time, she quickly descended the stairs and began into a vague heading towards the open center of the facility, only to notice Oliver sitting in the distance at the camouflage station.

_Is he... Painting his own face?_

With a momentary glance around, she began towards him, attempting as casual of an approach as she could manage.

_Yep. That's...  
_

Eying his reflection in a mirror dubiously, she inspected his complexion that was now coated in thin yellow and green stripes, and a small smile forced itself through when he held up a card with a photograph of the same sort of grass next to his face.

_Huh._

"Hey."

Greeted before a word left her mouth, her walking pace finally ground to a halt.

"Hey... What's your secret?"

"My dad taught all three of us how to paint. He always liked painting pictures of nature... Things we imagine and don't usually get to see."

"That's nice of him."

"He was always in search of dye and paint though... I'm sure you can understand."

Seating herself in a free chair across the table, she released a minor sigh, taking in the scent of open paint jars in exchange.

_Well I don't go scrounging for paint, but..._ "Ah, I was thinking about yesterday."

"Yeah?"

"And I've kind of thought... We should be allies. I, _um_ , aside from just being people from Three... It would make sense to work together for a common goal."

"Being one of us making it out."

"As shitty as it sounds, yes."

"That's the reality of all this, though."

She paused, and took a quick look at several of the tributes throughout the training facility.

"It is... And now that I'm seeing what the careers and some of these other crazy people can do, I'm pretty sure I won't last an hour on my own, by myself."

He peeked at her, his smile hidden amongst the grass.

"You don't know that."

"I do! I'm a damned electrical technician who's daily survival was reliant on making enough money to pay for a hole in the wall... I haven't fought or killed anyone for any reason."

"Neither have I."

"Well... I'm just saying. Since we're both in this imposition... I wanted to make a point of working together, so at least one of our sorry butts gets out of this nightmare alive."

She held out her hand, and he looked down at it, before looking back up at her with approval.

"Sounds good to me."

Firmly shaking her hand in response, a blush briefly touched her complexion, and he pushed a paintbrush and several jars of paint over in front of her.

"Know how to paint?"

"Not really." _Not at all, actually._

He touched his hand to his chin, smudging some of the grass.

"Well... From what I've learned today... Camouflage is not that much different from painting a picture. Not that hard either. The point is to blend in with your environment... Using whatever happens to be around."

Glancing aside at the tuft of neck-length red hair resting on her shoulder, she furrowed her brow at him.

"So... How in the world would I blend in to anything with all this?"

"Leaves, Sticks... Mud."

Her eyebrow rose, and he countered it with a perk of his nearly unseen eyebrow.

"You want to stay alive, and the best way to do that besides killing, is to blend in with the arena."

"So, hiding."

She picked up the paintbrush, and looked at her arm with curiosity, dabbing the brush into a jar of tan paint.

"That... Unless, you'd rather stand out as a vicious monster to be feared."

Producing a quiet laugh to mask concern, she watched as he began to apply strokes of yellow paint onto her forearm, only to reach aside, getting another small dab of green.

"I'll leave that to the careers."

* * *

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, Day 02, 7:54p.m.**

Setting aside a glass of a sweet and mysteriously light-blue beverage, briefly inspecting her still-painted forearm as she reached aside to a remote on an adjacent nightstand, Alyssa sat on the comforter of her bed. Casually tapping on the curved black surface of the wireless electronic device, the view to the outside was promptly replaced by the illumination of a television screen as it lit up, and a scene of a fountain somewhere in the Capitol appeared.

_Hmm. I know we've done touch-receptive stuff... The see-through screen is interesting. Projector, maybe?_

With another swirl of her index finger, the virtual image changed to a live interview of the current head gamemaker, by none other than Caesar Flickerman. Crossing her legs after curling her fingers around the tall glass again, she took another gulp of the strange and tasty liquid as she tuned into the show, only to realize the glass was now empty as it lowered into her lap.

"We're two days into training... Is there anything in particular you've noticed about some of this year's tributes?"

"Several things, Caesar. A few from the outer districts have been revealing some secret talents... Of course, the all-stars from One and Two are a force to be reckoned with."

"No surprise there."

Flinching as the room's door opened, only to relax when she realized it was one of the oddly silent servants instead, Alyssa motioned for the crimson-adorned male to come closer, and then presented the glass, lifting her hand up alongside it to indicate a refill.

_Awful damn weird to have someone else to do stuff for you... Back home, you have to do everything yourself._

A nod later, the Avox vanished, and the door shut with a simple click of a latch, releasing her attention back to the ongoing televised conversation.

"...He's not even that big though."

"And yet he still threw a man completely over himself."

"Short but strong... I think I can see why folks have an eye on him after all."

The door opened again seconds later, and the Avox stepped in, presenting both the glass and an entire pitcher full of the blue drink. With a smile, she took hold of both and heaved the pitcher onto the nightstand, only to turn and gently grasp the servant's hand as a silent thank you.

_Even if you can't talk... I feel like you're the sort of person I wouldn't mind having around. Or maybe you're just doing your job, being nice and convenient... What's the word... Servant?_

Watching the Avox's prompt departure, eying their crimson dress until it was obscured by the closing door, Alyssa turned back to the television, her smile cycling back into a calculating glare as she continued listening.

_Anyway..._

"What I think is interesting, is the rivalry among the tributes from Five."

"I heard it's part of a long-lasting family feud."

"You wouldn't think such an ordeal would even exist in a place like Five, but from the looks of things, those tributes aren't very happy to end up together."

Alyssa rolled her eyes, and refilled her glass with the pitcher.

_Not surprised Oliver and I aren't being hyped over. I don't think either of us have really shown anything of significance... But that's probably alright. Just need be quiet and unsuspecting for now. Then when the time comes... We'll rise from the shadows and see if we can steal the show._


	3. Chapter 3

**Training Center Observation Deck; Day 03, 11:21a.m.**

Cyprianos, the head gamemaker, watched with interest through a zoomed handheld screen as the scattered variety of teenaged trainees stood, moved and worked throughout the offered stations. Pausing on one pair sitting and conversing, with their color-coded uniforms revealing them both to be from District Three, he then sat back, setting the screen aside and taking a sip from a tall angular glass filled with sparkling green alcohol.

"Sir."

Glancing across his shoulder, and then moving to accept an open sketchbook with several concept drawings on it, he inspected the artwork with a rise of interest.

 _Arena Fifty-Eight..._ "That's new."

Tapping on the sketched and silver-colored design for an angular-shaped cornucopia, he waited as the prior gamemaker shuffled closer.

"Oh, we've decided it was time to consider a new approach with the Cornucopia. Something modern, different from the old style we've been using all these years."

"But this barely looks like a horn."

"Granted, it's unique, but everyone will still know its purpose."

After a momentary eyebrow rise, he handed the sketchbook back, and took another sip of the beverage.

 _Just like the arena... Interesting._ "How far along is the development?"

"The design department is working on a full-scale mock up. Should be complete by the end of the week."

"Let me know when it is ready."

"Of course, sir."

* * *

"Tatius, and Aquila. They're from Two."

Alyssa nodded.

"Shimmer and Glint are from One."

For a brief moment, both her and Oliver traded humored expressions.

_Such odd names... Only from the Career districts._

"The rest, we'll find out later I guess."

"Yeah. Those four are probably the most dangerous though."

"Not probably... They are."

Reclining back from a trio of rope knots holding a pair of sticks together, Alyssa watched with mild amusement as Oliver looked at her creation, and then back down at the elaborate and incomplete knot he was working on.

"Nice."

Delicately looping a length of rope, the screech of a gymnasium whistle pierced the air, and he exhaled from his own startled movement as part of the knot was pulled undone.

"...Oh well. Lunch is on."

"I guess the odds were... _Knot_ in its favor anyway."

"Wow."

Shaking his head from her stifled laugh as he stood upright, Oliver moved into motion towards the training center's entrance, purposefully slowing to allow several other tribute pairs to go first. With his fellow teammate matching his pace, his chin rose in contemplation as she still remained quiet.

_Already halfway through another day... How many times are we doing all this? Can't be too much longer... And that's a worrying thought._

* * *

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, Day 03, 1:06p.m.**

Sitting in front of her bedroom window, with an empty plate beside herself and her forehead pressed against the thick glass, the same bright view of the Capitol from the third floor of the training center greeted her eyes, only to be blocked out when her eyelids slid shut.

_We're halfway through training already. Six days, right? Seven? Probably just six. I don't know. Still haven't even touched any bigger weapons. Tried a knife once... Ugh._

A distant tinkle of something fragile breaking on the floor forced her eyes open, and she turned as a commotion arose, and then a scream from one of the stylists filled the apartment, followed by several hurried footsteps, and then a jumble of shouts and obscenities.

_What the hell?_

Sitting silently, feeling perfectly obligated to stay put, she listened to the indiscernible and hurried speech of a phone call beginning beneath several back and forth exchanges.

_Not about to be tangled in whatever just took place in the main room... Is Oliver there and seeing this?_

Eyes wandering in an arc from the doorway back to the window, she stared at the streets below, trying to picture what she heard seconds before as more footsteps and voices echoed behind, only for a door to open and shut, leaving the apartment in silence.

_I kind of want to see... But at the same time... I think I'll just wait in here. We're still on lunch break anyway._

Sitting still, however, she grunted with overwhelming curiosity, pushing herself up onto her feet.

_Now its all quiet, and somebody has to know what's going on..._

Hurrying to her bedroom's doorway, however, she suddenly encountered Oliver, who promptly backpedaled out of the passage.

"Oops."

"Hey, wait."

Leaning out of the doorway, she eyed the slender blonde male with interest.

"Did you see what just happened?"

"I didn't. I was about to ask if you did"

"Damn."

"I just walked back in here from the hallway. Was coming from the elevator and our door opened, and it looked like everyone left our quarters in a big group. I think someone was carrying our mentor, to be honest."

"The grumpy hagwoman?"

"Yup. All I heard was something about 'necessary inquiries' and... That's it, actually."

"Weird."

"Yeah. Not sure how to feel about it."

"What happened that we didn't see?"

"I have no idea... But I guess we'll find out in due time."

* * *

**8:49p.m.**

_...Or not._

Meandering past the empty dining table of their still-silent quarters, Alyssa exchanged a shrug in passing towards Oliver, seconds before he vanished into his own bedroom.

_That woman's still absent... And now its time for bed, since we're feeling a bit rough from all of that..._

Twisting a shiny brass knob and pushing open the door to her bedroom, she suddenly realized somebody was sitting on the edge of the bed within, waiting patiently. Blinking repeatedly after an instant halt beyond the doorway, she found herself staring apprehensively at a short-haired brunette man in a dark grey-teal suit-coat, who then turned and acknowledged her presence with a nod.

"Evening."

Met with an unwavering stare, he then shut off a small device in his palm and removed a pair of glasses from his nose.

"There's something we need to talk about, miss Rosseau."

_Oh, great. Nice and vague._

Her eyebrows then furrowed from the thought.

"Um, who are you?" _And why are you sitting on my, uh, that bed?_

"My name's Markell... Call me Mark, if you'd like."

Met with another wordless expression, he patiently continued.

"...Your prior mentor died earlier. I'm replacing her from now on."

"Wha... She's dead?"

"Yes."

Her mouth dropped open with great surprise from his simple confirmation.

"Uh, p-people don't think I killed her... Do they?"

Meeting her worry with a laugh, his arm rose, waving something invisible aside.

"Certainly not. She suffered a heart attack."

"Oh." _Cardiac arrest...?_

Alyssa's eyes lowered momentarily.

"I don't think she liked me very much."

"Why's that?"

"We never really spoke at length... Didn't seem like she had much motivation or positivity, either."

"Hard to say with those that endured the games in years prior..."

"I guess so."

"You can't always be friends with everyone anyway, right?"

"Not with her, for sure."

"Think you'll miss her?"

"Not really."

A subtle smile then graced the light goatee on his face.

"Well... Seeing how things have progressed, I guess we'll just pick up wherever she left off. I've already been briefed on your progress with training, and I do have some recommendations..."

Watching her arms slowly cross beneath visibly tired eyes, his hands then came together on his lap.

"...That we will discuss tomorrow morning."

"Okay."

Standing from the bedding and moving around the foot of the mattress with precision, Markell then set his hand on her shoulder.

"Anyway... I apologize for startling you, and the short notice of things, but I'm here to help you now."

Turning and watching as he continued past, curiosity piqued by his subtle smile, her crossed arms slowly parted from beneath her bosom.

_Huh. Thanks?_

Looking across the room towards the bathroom, her brow furrowed from the ongoing development.

_Seems I have a new... Mentor now. What the heck... Is he from Three? I've never seen him before in my life... But I've never seen Oliver either so that doesn't explain anything._

Slipping off a pair of black socks from her feet, she padded towards the bathroom.

_Seems this year's first victim... Is already from District Three. That can't be a good sign._

* * *

**Tribute Training Center; Day 04, 8:53a.m.**

Approaching the double-door entrance to the training center, Alyssa's shoulder was gently grasped, and she slowed into a turning halt, realizing that Markell had similarly stopped Oliver beside her.

"Alright you two, since you have pretty good grasps on the more mundane parts of survival, now's the time to start making yourselves lethal."

"Okay."

"Yes sir."

"Try everything. Swords, knives, everything they have available. Its all there for a reason."

"I've never even used any of those."

"A lot of people haven't, but you're about to. Even a little experience is better than none, and besides... Practice makes perfect, right?"

"Sure." _Hardly works in this case, but..._

"Think of it this way. Even if you both are just civilian working class youth... Imagine how the others will feel when the unassuming duo from Three suddenly becomes a deadly nightmare in the arena."

Tilting her head with a slight smirk from the thought, their shoulders were released in tandem as he moved back in a turn.

"I'll leave it up to both of you for now... Just bear in mind that the time to do this is increasingly limited. Avoid wasting it."

Revolving and shoving one of the doors open with her shoulder, Alyssa's chin rose as she entered the open air of the facility.

_Even if we can't suddenly fake experience... Not a lot can beat throwing off the competition with a change of tactics._

Glancing over as Oliver kept beside her stride, her heart beat from ongoing contemplation.

_Deception can do a lot when done right. Same thing with theft... Strength of mind can make a decisive difference too. Which is good for the likes of us two... Factory workers._

* * *

***SHING***

_This... Is something else!_

Grunting from a deft swing of a double-edged sword, lopping off a thick chunk of a foam dummy on a pedestal, Alyssa's heart beat strong from the effort as she repeatedly hacked apart several targets.

_You're dead, you're headless, that's your arm on the floor, and... We're done? Gah, damn. Alright._

Watching as the battered targets sank into square channels in the floor with a whir of electric motors, she lowered the sword, allowing it to rest on the floor for a moment in a relaxation of her arms.

_You know... I can almost see why these maniacs grin and holler when they use these. There's a lot of power involved, and holy hell does it deal some damage._

Hoisting the blade up and bringing it over to a weaponry rack, she gingerly set the length of black steel onto it and wandered aside, allowing an eerie smile to arise upon her lips, growing further as a few heads turned towards her in the corner of her eye.

_Yeah, that's right. Be suspicious. You all don't know what I'm actually capable of._

* * *

_Nope. Nope. Noooohhhh hey, that one hit._

Squinting at the thin handle of a knife buried into the collar of another target dummy, her eyes wandered beyond, seeing several more blades that clearly missed, scattered across the floor behind.

_Interesting that they make knives specifically for throwing... You'd think these would only be for cutting and stabbing._

Plucking one more from a tray, her arm coiled back and shot forward, only to sigh with exasperation as the blade landed in the dummy's thigh, only to slip out and fall to the floor with a clatter.

_This is tough. Not exactly going to master this in two or three days..._

Glancing at the now-empty tray beside her, a sigh emptied her chest, and she promptly backpedaled in a turn away from the station.

_...Probably not at all, actually._

* * *

Sliding several information cards left and right with her fingertips, busily reading concise paragraphs of information on each, her free hand touched her chin.

_Plants, and fauna, and what not to eat... Hmm. Coming from an environment of urban industry where there's only weeds, planted trees and birds... Probably good I'm taking the time for this, because... I sure didn't know how poisonous and toxic nature is. Nightlock? Apparently dandelions are edible... Huh. Might have to remember that one._

Arranging the cards into a stack, and then exchanging them for another, she resumed reading, only to pause.

_Wait... 'Tributes are off limits as food'...? What in the hell? Somebody tried eating people? I mean, if you're that desperate for meat... That's freaky, and bad enough that they made a rule about it... Which must mean somebody's done it before._

Turning the card over and sliding it aside, she exhaled.

_Yeah. No. I could maybe handle eating a squirrel or something... But not that._


	4. Chapter 4

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, Day 05, 6:37a.m.**

Instead of sunshine flowing into the window that morning, the sky was woven with a light grey blanket of clouds, and a layer of fog hid most of the city from view. Unfurling from the mass of blanketry in middle of the bed, Alyssa watched with widening eyes as streaks of water coursed down the glass. Rising to her feet with interest contrasting earlier mornings, she shuffled over to the window and touched the cool glass with her fingertips.

_As much as I miss an open blue sky... I love rain a whole lot more._

Touching the tip of her nose to the cold surface, drops of rain wandered aimlessly down the outside, drawing her vision lower as newly arriving moisture coalesced into numerous flows down the transparent surface.

 _If only there was a way..._ "Or a balcony."

Pushing herself away from her own whisper, she padded across the carpet and daintily pulled open the door, peeking out of the entryway to her room.

_Nobody in sight... Okay._

Winding through the living room, bare feet making little noise as she hurried around furniture, she pulled open a previously noticed and unused door, and the breath of a cold and gentle wind met her senses as soon as she swung it open. Allowing the sterile warmth of the apartment to be replaced by the swirling breeze, her skin grew ticklish as the heat in her limbs faded away, painting a rosy tint of red above a smile lifting her lips as her feet met the cold concrete.

_That's better._

Stepping up to the wall lining the balcony's edge, graced by the lightly falling rain, her eyes then rose to the sky, gazing into the layer of grey that seemed to stretch on forever with the sun nowhere in sight. With wind cheekily flicking locks of hair left and right, harmless touches of rainwater splashed upon her face and hair, slowly and wonderfully dampening both.

_Even in a place like this, weather still works its magic... Good._

Vision descending from the light grey void above, all that was visible below were glimpses and silhouettes of other towering buildings, wreathed by the ghostly fog.

_Nice and mysterious. I'm liking this._

After an unknown passage of time, the click of a latch and slow footfall startled Alyssa out of a slumber that the rain lulled her into. Then, a plush cotton towel was draped across her shoulders, and her attention rotated aside, discovering Markell's appearance beside herself as he leaned against the railing.

"You're up early."

"Mm. I didn't know it even rained here."

Eying the auburn-haired young woman as she brushed aside wet locks of hair, his chin rose with recollection.

"Last year, it rained the entire week of training, and several days into the games."

Vision and imagination wandering elsewhere, she stared at the slow strobe of a red navigation light.

_Over a week of rain... The sky would be superbly blue and be free of clouds after that. That'd be something to see. If only I was somewhere else and a year older... Dammit._

Shivering, realizing her clothing was soaked, she glanced aside as Mark began towards the door behind.

"Whenever you feel like it... Take a shower and warm up, girl. Breakfast will be ready in a hour or so. We'll talk more then."

Nodding in answer, she then took a spare few steps back, encountering a wall just behind, further in beneath the balcony's rooftop.

_Soon. Let me be nice and cold first... So I know what its like to be alive later on._

* * *

Sitting in a roar of white noise, eyes kept shut as lukewarm water cascaded down from a shower spout, Alyssa slowly breathed in and out through her nose, mind wading around in deep thought.

_Winning._

_It probably won't happen, but... Why act like its impossible. Right? There's always that crazy chance... Like he said. Like everyone says. Nothing is impossible... But everything is tough._

The distinctly animated voice of Caesar Flickerman then filled her ears in a series of laugh-addled echoes.

_'Alyssa Rosseau... This year's victor of the fifty-seventh annual Hunger Games!'_

Imagining a recapitulation of the twenty three others that died, Oliver's portrait appeared among them, and she grunted.

_Even if he and I work together, its probably doubtful either of us will make it out... But there's always that chance. Maybe he could win. Go home to his mom and dad and sisters, bathed in riches, and all of them could live happily ever after. Except him, because of the terrible things he endured. Plus I would be dead. Not that I'd matter much to him in the scheme of things... I'm just some girl that he got reaped with, after all._

Parting her lips with a forceful exhale, she swallowed.

_He's a brother, and a son... Where would his family end up if he died?_

Imagining a variety of fates of his aforementioned younger sisters, a stronger grunt of guilty displeasure issued from her throat.

_Nowhere good, that's where. Dammit. This is going to eat me alive. Or I could just not care what happens..._

Slowly shaking her head, her lips pursed.

_Of course, that's assuming I can even survive to the end. No point in worrying about the aftermath if I just die anyway._

Her eyes slowly peeked open, and she watched the girl in the shower mirror stare back, sitting bare on the floor under the downpour of warm water.

_We'll see how things progress. If he just dies immediately, then I'm not going to slow myself down over it. If he lasts a while... Then we'll see what we can do as a team. After that... We'll see who ends up being the last one standing... As much as I hate considering it._

Slipping the smooth fabric of her training shirt over herself with several shuffles, Alyssa tugged the sleeves and preened it over her stomach, mind still wandering in recollection.

_'Just imagine how people would react when the unassuming duo from three suddenly turns into a nightmare...'_

_He's right. Just imagine the sponsors and fans... I've seen the way the other tributes look at me. They're not sure what to think. I probably look like a pushover... But arrogant underestimation isn't very wise. I could have all kinds of tricks up my sleeve... And the smiles I've been putting on probably mess with everyone even more._

Glancing aside to the door of her room, she stared at the reflections on the platinum doorknob.

_I wonder what everyone thinks of Oliver? Just some quiet young man from District Three... Another unassuming teenager, not very threatening until you throw him into a deathmatch. Then its anyone's guess of what he's capable of. Just like me. Just like any of the other non-careers here. Assuming we're all fodder is probably very unwise, and yet... I'm sure its already how someone sees us._

Crossing her arms, she looked beyond the bedroom window to the mountainous horizon once more.

_We'll see how well that actually works out. Hopefully that kind of arrogance gets them killed._

* * *

**Tribute Training Center; Day 05, 11:04a.m.**

"Got a plan for the evaluation?"

Head turning from Oliver's spoken appearance just beside her, Alyssa's chin rose towards the ceiling, and the brush in her hand ceased movement.

"Possibly."

"Good... You're better off than me already."

Furrowing her brow, she quietly huffed.

 _I was being vague, but..._ "I'm sure I'll come up with something."

"Well, even having that in mind is probably better than nothing."

"I'm not really expecting a stellar score anyway. With my luck, I'll end up with a five or something."

Remaining still as he plucked another brush from the table, he dipped the hairs into a jar of green paint, and with a mildly cheeky smile visible on his face, Alyssa watched as he began to paint something onto the back of her hand.

After a few minutes, a green symbol she faintly recognized appeared, in the form of a small plant with four round leaves.

Her eyes rose from it, to Oliver's face as he set the brush aside.

"...What is this?"

"A clover."

Her expression lightened as he then stood upright.

"You mentioned luck, and it doesn't sound like you have very much... So I gave you some more."

* * *

Leaning outward from the crowded row of benches lining a dim hallway as the female tribute from District One, Shimmer, was called forth into the gymnasium, both Alyssa and Oliver sat across from each other in mutual silence, legs bouncing with a blend of impatience and uncertainty. Then, after a period of maybe fifteen minutes, the male tribute Glint was paged, stood to his feet, and strode out of the hallway.

_One, and then two, Aquila and Tatius, and then..._

"Alyssa, Rosseau."

Swallowing from the rapid passage of time, rising to her feet, she tried to ignore numerous eyes following her as she followed the path of the previous four, rounding a corner and watching with baited breath as the gate rose in front of her. With little sound heard besides a distant fan and her footsteps echoing, she looked over towards the gamemaker's balcony, approaching the target range on the far end. Moving amid some light discussion, all eyes were trained on her as her feet drew to a halt in front of a broad array of bladed weapons sitting upon a rack.

Composing herself, she then turned towards the balcony as instructed.

"Alyssa Rosseau... District Three."

The following silence forced her to take a deep breath, and her eyes began to wander among the gymnasium's offerings.

_Okay... Now to make some kind of impression to these... Big wigs._

Her eyes then lowered to a circular light on the floor, and her head tilted in recognition.

_Electricity...?_

Glancing back across her shoulder, spotting the stubby profile of a hatchet, she stepped aside, plucking the weapon from the rack and turning it around in her grasp, presenting a thick hammer-like rectangle of steel.

_Why not?_

Heartbeat rising, her eyebrow rose with a growing idea blooming in her mind.

_Since you just happen to be available... Let's get that glass out of the way first._

* * *

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, 5:14p.m.**

Standing silently on the open balcony, watching and listening in silence in the late afternoon as citizens began to crowd the square just down the street, Alyssa stared down at the busy ambiance of commotion and excitement that echoed endlessly around the architecture of the metropolis. With thousands of citizens cheerfully anticipating the Games, now only two days away from beginning, her heart pounded with a medley of fear-driven emotions, tempered briefly by thoughts of her distant home.

_That's right... Everyone with a televideo projector back home will be tuning in tonight. Now that all our survival training is pretty much over with, the Districts are all probably very excited to see their tributes again... Maybe._

A seeping sigh then brought her into a shiver. _Tonight and tomorrow are about to be a big deal... With all of the scores announced, and then the interviews, and -_

Flinching from a realization of footsteps, and then the tinkle of a glass being set upon the concrete wall, her eyes slowly wandered up to the cheekbone of Markell, only for him to simply offer her the beverage in his hand.

"Here."

Looking down at the stubby crystal glass, filled with the peculiar sweet blue drink, her fingers carefully accepted the offering, taking a sip, and then swallowing.

"Too bad this isn't liquor."

A quiet laugh accompanied Mark's following smile.

"If you didn't have so much ahead of you, I'd get you some."

Eyebrow rising from the thought, she took another sip. Maybe you should.

"In any case, they'll be broadcasting everyone's scores at six o'clock, so we'll finally see just how much you both impressed the gamemakers."

Tilting the glass further, she squinted at the sun's glare as a cluster of clouds tiptoed along in front of it.

"Alright." _Hopefully my creative antics with that diode's cables aren't about to speed up my demise..._

* * *

_Deep breath._

Alyssa, Oliver, Markell, and the two head stylists sat together, crowded onto one lengthy curved couch as all eyes were focused on the television. Right at the top of the six-o'clock hour, the legendary young face of Caesar Flickerman appeared on the screen, orange hair and all, and a roar of recognition swept across the square outside, audible through the open doorway nearby. Displaying an impossibly white smile as he greeted his audience of hundreds of thousands, he preened a stack of papers as he spoke an introductory refresher of the scoring, and then after a preparative breath, began to read them aloud, to all of Panem.

"Starting with District One... Shimmer, with a score of nine. Glint, with a score of nine."

_Nope. No surprises there._

"From District Two... Aquila, with a score of nine, and Tatius, a score of ten."

_Or there._

Palms growing sweaty, she stared at the television star, breath held.

"District Three... Alyssa, with a score of eight."

All four pairs of eyes met the young woman in sequence as she blinked, and Markell heartily shook her shoulder.

"Not bad. Not bad at all."

"...And Oliver, with a score of eight."

"Oooh!"

"Matching numbers!"

"Excellent work you two!"

Eyes immediately meeting her teammate's, both teen's mouths remained open with shared disbelief.

_We both have eights...? I was expecting something a bit lower with mine... Whatever he did must have been pretty good. We're not double digits... But at least we're above the halfway mark._

Allowing a rise of elation from the bubble of excitement in room as she was tugged into a round of celebratory hugs, she exhaled beneath the excited chatter.

_Was breaking a floor light and doing short-circuiting superheating worth an eight? I mean... If the gamemakers think so, then it must be so. Its permanent now, so... Oh. Damn. If only I could see a lot of people's expressions right now... I bet some are mad and confused. We probably looked like easy pickings for a while. Heh. Maybe the odds actually are..._

"...Ever in your favor. Good night!"

Listening to the roar of the populace outside from the national broadcast's punctual ending, she sank back into the couch pillow behind with a hefty exhale.

_Maybe we do have that crazy little chance after all._


	5. Chapter 5

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, Day 06, 7:09p.m.**

Sitting in a folding chair brought into her bathroom, having endured another round of cleaning and detail work after supper, Alyssa watched with ongoing curiosity as two members of her stylist prep team carefully brought in a folded emerald-green textile together. Then, her eyebrows shot upward as it was gently unfurled before her.

"What do you think?"

"It's... Very green." _And not even ridiculous or revealing either... How, and when... Is that metal?_

"A lovely shamrock green. We made sure to get a color that would suit your eye color, dear."

Patiently rising to her feet, reaching out and touching the soft material and rubbing it between her fingers, she studied the garment with a bloom of elated interest.

 _My... Eye color? I'm... I didn't think anyone noticed too readily. Huh._ "Let's see how you did, then."

After several minutes of slipping into the garment and undergoing a variety of adjustments, she eyed herself, repeatedly preening parts of the dress as the assisting stylists squealed with joy from their handiwork. Held up by a single strap over the edge of her right shoulder, it tucked just below her collarbone in a cautious curve around her side, rising up again under the other shoulder. Below her chest, it drew in snug around her waist, before cascading down freely and ending just below her ankles. Two stripes of color - Two stripes of actual gold and copper woven in, wound down from the shoulder in a swooping, circuitous route, following separate paths around her waist, and then dropping down in a curve and ending near her right foot.

_This is wild. Good wild. I like it._

Moving slightly, thin vertical and horizontal lines, almost invisible at certain light angles, glinted in secrecy in a pattern across every part of the dress, reminiscent of...

"...Circuitry."

Her eyes met the third stylist, who had his hand touching his chin in approval.

"We hoped you would notice that detail."

A momentary blush stained her cheeks. _Not that circuitry is a big deal or anything, even if everything electronic in Panem required it... At least these guys are paying attention to where I came from. I really didn't think they were aware of stuff like that, considering I'm just a disposable... Celebrity._

With a touch of lipstick, a dash of blush on her cheeks, a wide necklace made of plated gold, and a precise application of eyeliner, Alyssa was helped to her feet, and walked up in front of the crystal mirror. The individual that stared back, was no longer a hapless eighteen year old girl from District Three. _No. I'm mysterious. Beautiful. Maybe even a divine being to some. Someone that even the Capitol is unworthy of. Someone who just descended from the heavens above, to grace the people of Panem with my presence._

Her hand rose and gently pushed through a lock of her hair, and she smiled as it fell back into place with ease.

_...Maybe. Theatrics aside... I think this is the first time I've been prettied up in a long while. I barely even recognize myself... But I kind of like that. All part of the deception, right? Pretty me is just a decoy for who I really am... Making people fall in love with an electrical technician._

* * *

_Thump-thump. Thump-thump._

Alyssa's heart beat hard as she, Oliver, and their entourage walked briskly into the foyer of a massive theater, only half an hour before the interviews began. Through a door, and down a broad flight of stairs, a brightly lit waiting room appeared at the end of a hallway, and after momentary advising, the two teens were relinquished into the room ahead. As soon as they stepped inside, however, a fresh round of scrutinizing began as a majority of the tributes within reevaluated each other, now that everybody was dressed up and gorgeous.

_Wow... This is... Kind of intense._

Eavesdropping on fragments of low conversation as both of them strolled along in tandem, she briefly observed Oliver straightening his sleeves with individual tugs, rediscovering the dark, royally purple tuxedo shirt and sharp black pants he was wearing.

_And to think, with how nice everyone looks now... Tonight is going to be a stark contrast compared to the coming days._

Finding an open space along the wall and leaning back against it one by one, a moment of silence lingered on, only to end with his wayward glance towards her.

"...Honestly Alyssa, you look quite nice."

A blush met her cheeks, resisting a smile that nearly curled her lips.

"Shhh. Thanks, but shush."

"Well, whatever. You're amazing right now, and I think you'll have no trouble winning over the audience in there."

The trace of the smile then faded as her eyes met his.

"If you say so."

Eyes rising to the low ceiling above the group, a sad hum left her throat.

"I wish we were dressed up like this for a dance... Or something. It just doesn't feel right to be so nice for one short interview."

"Especially for our own deathmatch."

"Yeah."

"But, a dance, you say?"

She tilted her head over.

"Yeah. Like a ball or something. A night of being happy."

His eyelids lowered, an eyebrow rising with curiosity.

"Would you dance?"

"I would."

"Alright tributes, in line from one to twelve. Ladies first."

A commanding voice captured all of their attentions with spoken orders, and within seconds, all individuals began crowding towards the adjoining hallway ahead. Pushing themselves up from their leans with a trade of uncertain expressions, Oliver then followed with a nod as he and Alyssa shuffled forward, moving alongside the rapidly forming lines.

"You've got this."

"Sure hope so."

Heads tilting inward in a magnetic manner as the screen mounted at the end of the hallway came to life, the legendary and energetic Caesar Flickerman spun out of his chair, greeting a roaring crowd of several thousand people inside the theater with excitement. On queue, a broad-shouldered and expressionless man appeared at the front of the line, and the girl from District One, Shimmer, was led away, disappearing a few seconds later and leaving the hallway stone silent as all eyes were glued to the screen. Then, the crowd burst to life as she strutted onstage, accepting Caesar's hand and settling daintily into a chair beside him.

_That dress... Looks like rippling water... Or some kind of liquid silver. Weird._

In a flash of excited back and forth banter and questions, her interview was over, and she was met with a roar of cheers as she waved her hand to the audience, and disappeared from view - As did the boy, Glint, who vanished from the hallway in sequence. With another roar of excitement, the proud male appeared with a grin splitting his face, and shook Caesar's hand vigorously before sitting. Clearly exuding confidence, and having showed earlier prowess during training, he easily boasted to the host and audience, earning him an encore of excitement as soon as the interview's minutes were up.

With a momentary bow, he disappeared offstage, leaving the audience bubbling with anticipation for District Two's tributes. Then, with no shortage of verbal admiration anywhere in the Capitol's streets, Aquila, the blonde from Two, walked with deadly precision onto the middle of the stage, accepting Caesar's kiss of her hand before taking a seat and looking over the audience.

Hearing whispers ensue in the hallway, an unsettling wave of worry seemed to wash over the rest of the tributes as Tatius disappeared around a far corner. With the career tributes having no trouble lapping up the Capitol's attention, demonstrated by the screams, whistles and clapping that arose at the start and finish of each interview, those who followed found themselves pressed to make a worthwhile impression - Swiftly realized by Alyssa as the man that disappeared earlier with Tatius, reappeared and walked straight towards her. Eyes widening hastily as his visibly broad hand touched her back, she was led along down the hallway, around a corner, and out of sight of the nineteen others behind.

_Here we go._

Footsteps away from the spotlight, to be seen by all of Panem, Alyssa stood in the darkness, mere paces from the stage as the roar of the audience, much louder than the screen produced, filled her ears. Heart beating fiercely, she took in deep breaths, trying to keep her own tremoring at bay.

_This is a big moment. Huge. Monumental. Only seconds away._

The applause died down, and then, a vacuum of silence ensued.

"From District Three."

A timely pause resulted in a rise of collective whispers in the audience, and Caesar grinned with excitement.

"I think most of you know who she is... She's lovely. Determined. Electrifying. But most of all..."

His eyes swooped across the audience.

"...Mysterious."

His arm rose upward towards the side of the stage, and the air escaped her lungs from his gesture.

"Miss Alyssa Rosseau!"

Feet towing the rest of her body into the bright light beyond the curtain, her eyes immediately widened from the incredible uproar as thousands of animated people appeared before her eyes in a mass of movement and excitement, leaving the low drumming of her heartbeat overlapped by the chaos of sound in the air. Under the moving array of lights, every part of her shined in a dramatic, spectacular manner. Her hair, eyes and skin glowed with life as the copper and gold of her dress danced and rippled with reflections, and the green fabric itself seemed alive with electricity as she walked up beside Caesar. Drawing to a halt, her eyes drifted from the gigantic audience to his face, greeting her with a personally impressed smile as he took her hand, and both of them sat down in the rotating chairs behind.

Looking out over the audience beyond as it slowly faded into awaiting silence, all eyes were quite literally upon her.

"I must say... You are absolutely dazzling."

A blush tinted her already warm cheeks.

"Thank you."

Sensing no further words from her after a pause, he touched his hands together with a breath.

"Tell me, miss Alyssa... What do you think about the Capitol, with your stay so far?"

Pausing, blinking with a quick gathering of words, her lips parted with a fragmented sentence.

"Its... Spectacular. Nothing like home. Everything's so clean, and fancy, and refined..."

"We wouldn't have it any other way."

She smiled weakly, and he touched his hand to his chin, only for his index finger to point towards her.

"So, your training score... How did it feel to earn an eight?"

Her eyes lowered momentarily.

"Well, I... Honestly didn't think I would score that high."

"And yet you did. Clearly somebody noticed you."

"They did." She exhaled, finding further words. "...After a little while, I realized the gamemakers weren't the only people keeping an eye on me, and you know, Caesar, that's alright. You never know what tricks those of us in the working class have up their sleeves anyway."

Caesar's eyebrow rose at the arising edge in her voice, and a low murmur of speculation filled the air as both of them looked towards the audience with smug smiles.

_There we go._

"Working class, you say?"

"Why yes. Before coming here, I busied myself with development of electromechanical equipment. You've probably interacted with something I've worked on and didn't even know it."

Hands coming together above his crossed leg, Caesar hummed with interest.

"Indeed. I think I'd lose count of how many such devices I probably use in a day's time."

"Well, I probably haven't touched everything of yours, necessarily, but..."

At first grinning at the crowd with continued amusement from her drawl, he then eyed Alyssa with passivity.

"Maybe not, but I'm sure you've touched many of the hearts of those back home."

Looking out towards one of several cameras from his clever turn in subject, her head tilted in realization.

_Yes. District Three. You're all watching, aren't you?_

"I'd like to think so. Even if I'm just one of many in the workforce, they're my people and I want them to know I miss them, and that I intend to fight for them."

Sitting back, allowing her a moment to battle away seemingly misty eyes, Caesar smiled with ease.

"I'm sure they do miss you, and I'll tell you what, miss Alyssa... I bet if your mom and dad could see you, as lovely and brave as you are now, I think they'd be very proud of you."

She nodded, and a smile forced its way through her lips as he turned to the clapping crowd.

_Someone must have told him... About my parents._

"...Wouldn't you be proud of her?"

The audience exploded into a cheer of elation, causing Caesar to grin in a chuckle as she blushed from the uproar.

"Now, if you go out there and win this year, I think District Three will be just as proud of you too."

She sighed with uncertainty.

"I sure hope so."

Caesar grinned, and then lifted her up to her feet.

"Ladies and gentlemen... Alyssa Rosseau, of District Three!"

Another round of incredible applause filled her ears, and she smiled at the thousands of people before her, masking an ongoing sense of uncertainty.

_I sure hope all the sympathy you people are showing me now... Will still be present when the Games actually began._

Turning and walking towards the opposite end of the stage, the brilliance of her dress came back to life for a few fleeting moments until she disappeared from sight, and the audience's volume thankfully began to lower.

_Sympathy aside... These people are impossibly loud._

Stepping out of another hallway, Alyssa was pounced upon by her stylists in a trio of hugs, and was then scooped into another by Markell's arm, before being pulled into a fifth by her district representative. Taking a well deserved deep breath, she looked at all five faces individually.

"I couldn't help getting a little emotional... How did I do?"

"Oh don't worry, you did well."

"You were marvelous, dear."

"Absolutely fantastic work."

Markell gripped and shook her shoulder, and she closed her eyes as her heart settled down.

"I think you've given everyone a proper run for their money...

Glancing towards another screen together, the group then silenced as Oliver appeared on the screen with a rise of fanfare.

_Oh. Right. He's up. This should be interesting._

Flitting aside as Mark's hand landed on her shoulder, she watched as he leaned closer, voice hushing.

"I'll catch up with you tomorrow morning. We'll talk then."

Nodding in answer, only for one of her stylists to take her opposite arm, she was led away down another hall, back up another flight of stairs, and then into the foyer of the theater.

_Oh...Kay. Maybe I'll watch a rerun of his later._

* * *

Kicking off her heeled shoes and appearing before the crystal mirror in her bathroom, the young woman looking back reflected upon the dress in silence, only to turn as two of the three prep team stylists appeared behind her.

"Miss Alyssa, we..."

Pausing their speech as her hand rose, she swallowed.

"Um, if I survive... Later... Can you all send this dress home with me?"

Startled by her query, one of them nodded.

"Yes, I'm sure that can be arranged, but..."

Alyssa then reached out and touched the speaking stylist with her hand.

"Then arrange it."

Her firm expression softened right afterward, seeing a second nod.

"Sorry, I'm... I just haven't worn anything so elegant in such a long time... I don't want it to be thrown away if I can wear it again as a victor."

Much to Alyssa's surprise, the same stylist burst into a fit of tears, instantly ruining the green coloring around her eyes.

"Then what do we do if you don't survive?"

"That's up to you."

* * *

Dressed in a soft white robe, sprawled upon the comforter of her bed with the lights off, her eyes remained locked on a digital clock mounted on the wall.

_Ten Thirty. The Games begin tomorrow._

Wandering aside to the same view of the skyline outside, her vision pulled back to the clock in a stare.

_The Games begin tomorrow._

Rolling over in a restless stretch, her arms pushed beneath the pillows on her bed, only to discover a small object meeting her fingertips. Fumbling around and grasping the object, she then withdrew a small steel vial of liquid, with a note attached by a string.

_'You earned it.'_

Unscrewing the lid with curiosity, a strong odor promptly met her nose, and her brow rose with mild surprise.

_Aha. Alcohol._

Tucking it against her lips, the liquid trickled into her mouth before going down in one gulp.

_Just a shot... Of something. Hmm. Pretty sweet though. Is this that... Wait..._

Setting the vial aside on the adjacent nightstand, she drug the covers back and tucked her legs underneath, sidling in before pulling the sheets back over herself. Mere minutes of staring at the same digital clock however, her eyelids began to gain heft, and after a moment of fighting, she grunted in realization, letting them slam shut.

"Ss... Sleep syrup."

_How clever... Thanks, Mark._


	6. Chapter 6

**Tribute Living Quarters; Floor 03, Day 07**

Blinking through bright fuzz, slowly discerning the interior of her room that was illuminated by a blast of morning sunlight, Alyssa's eyes found the crisp digital numerals of a wall-mounted clock.

_Nine... Thirteen. Fourteen._

Attempting to remember something as she stared at the displayed digits, and then drifting aside to the bright concrete cityscape outside, her eyes widened in horror, only for her eyelids to slam shut again, trying desperately to force herself back to sleep.

_No. Oh no._

Forcing her nose into the pillow beneath, hot breaths of fearful realization warmed her face.

_This is the day._

Tilting downward, sucking in a cooler breath and holding it within her lungs, her heart pounded in the absence of respiration.

_This... Is that fateful day. Everything and everyone comes together... And then it all falls apart._

Pushing herself up from her burial in the pillow, she stared at her arms holding herself up, hands planted in the mattress beneath.

_I guess... I'm glad I was able to sleep. If I didn't do that at the very least... I'd be extra screwed._

Collapsing onto her side with a bodily slump, she stared at the small steel vial on the nightstand.

_I don't like owing people I barely know... But I definitely owe him one for that._

Whirling over in a sheet-tangling roll, she stared at the ajar passage into the restroom.

_What time does this start, anyway? Nobody's come in here to wake me up yet... Should probably go ahead and shower. Its not like we'll be able to just lay here much longer. Not that I actually want to get ready for this... But its coming closer. Every minute. What a nightmare. I don't like this. I don't want this... But I didn't choose this. It chose me. They chose me. Everyone cheering and clapping last night._

Touching her hand to her face, rubbing her eyes, she sighed shakily.

_Cheering... For our death._

Sitting upright, her brow then furrowed with reluctance.

_No. You won't cheer for my death. You'll cheer for my life... Because I'm going to fight for it._

* * *

Bundled in the comfort of her thick robe, Alyssa sat on the edge of her messy bedding bed, chin rising in distraction when a knock at her door came.

"Yes?"

"Its me."

"Oh."

Turning over her shoulder from the masculine voice as the door drifted open, Markell peeked inside, only to continue inward with a smile.

"Morning."

"Mm."

"Feeling alright?"

Vision drifting away, she shrugged.

"I found your gift last night."

"Did you like that?"

"Didn't expect the sleep syrup."

He laughed lightly.

"That was in case the shot itself didn't knock you out... That stuff was nice and strong."

Her eyes then drifted down to her bare feet.

"At least I got to sleep."

"You did, and that's a good thing, my dear. We've got two hours until you're on your way in a hovercraft."

Her stomach shriveled at the thought.

_I wondered how long..._

"Make sure you fill your stomach before we go. Who knows what's out there in the arena."

Grimacing, she shifted as his hand came to rest on her shoulder.

"...In any case, last night was a great show on your part. You and Oliver caused some noise in the streets when you appeared on screen. Reruns and all."

Turning her head with an eye-roll of disbelief, he grinned.

"I'm not joking, girl. You've got fans out there, so don't be afraid to show some appreciation."

She blinked, her eyes falling to her feet on the carpet.

_Fans. Supporters. Sponsors. Maybe even some people back home in District Three. Who knows. Maybe people do want to see me win. Even if it seems so far-fetched, and..._

Blinking back into reality, she suddenly stared at Markell as an old thought resurfaced.

"Mark... Are you from District Three?"

A pause lingered between them, and his hand retracted from her shoulder.

"No. I am not from Three. I'm not a victor either."

Her stare softened in confusion.

"...Then how are you my mentor if you're not even from my home?"

"That... Here's the thing. When your previous mentor died a couple days ago, somebody had to replace her, and there weren't any suitable candidates left in Three. So a few strings were pulled, and I ended up working with you."

Her heart sank from the implication. _District Three is almost never victorious, but, still..._

Eyes cautiously returned to his face as he adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose, she leaned back, propping herself up with her arms.

"Alyssa, I live and work here in the Capitol. But that doesn't mean I don't have the audacity to think differently."

"Oh... Kay." _And...?_

"I became your mentor so I could help you win... I feel like District Three deserves a long-overdue victory, and I believe you are just the sort of person that can achieve it for them."

A sigh left her lungs from his attempted positivity.

"If you say so."

* * *

_Ugh._

For the first time, the rich, excessive food was not going down well that morning, finally causing Alyssa to resign to a simpler slice of toast with some sort of plum jam spread across it.

_To think the same people that serve all this food, are about to gleefully watch twenty four kids kill each other... How does anyone keep an appetite during the Games? Maybe some people like having bloody battles as their conversational subject during lunch..._

With the swirling medley of dark thoughts continuing to invade her stomach, she set the half-eaten slice of bread onto the already half-eaten platter of breakfast.

_A week ago, I'd be having meager pickings. Now look at me... This stuff is making me sick. So much of it, and its just too rich and I'm... I'm done._

* * *

Stepping back into her bedroom, an assortment of clothes lay arranged onto her bed, instantly drawing her closer, only to inspect what was quickly realized to be factory made attire.

_Let's see... Black shirt, dark grey cargo pants, a belt, socks, boots... Plenty of black. No gold and glitter, nothing electrifying... Nothing complex to change, that's nice._

Tugging on the pants with a back-and-forth wobble of steps, she looped the thick leather band around her waist, slipping it through the buckle. Casting aside the robe onto the made bedding, she then slipped into an elastic mesh brassiere, shuffling into the black short-sleeved shirt with a several downward pulls, and then brushing her auburn hair free from the collar with a swipe of her arm.

_Not bad... Fits good. Kinda wish I had clothing like this back home. Maybe its just the fact that its probably brand new. These pants are nice. Denim? Maybe something better._

Seating herself onto the floor, pulling on long black socks, and then tucking her feet into the provided boots, she began tying several knots, wiggling her toes.

_Now I can see why they took all those measurements, actually._

"Alyssa."

She flinched when Mark appeared in the doorway.

"Are you ready?"

Her expression hardened from the query, finishing the loop of a knot on her right boot.

 _No. I'll never be ready for this_... "Yes."

"Alright. Come with me."

Rising upright, and then looking back at the bed, and then aside to the window, a worried sigh seeped out of her lungs.

_One whole week already gone, and now I'm walking out of here, probably for the last time._

Heart racing as she passed through the doorway, entering the living room, her eyes met those of a similarly dressed Oliver, who simply offered a tiny nod in greeting.

_This is it then. The beginning of our ends._

* * *

Pure unfettered dread coursed through her veins as she walked alone beside Markell to the door of another elevator. With the push of two buttons, and a silent meander inside, the door shut, and the car began to move upwards, shoving an already sinking heart further into the young woman's stomach.

"Alyssa."

Her eyes rose up to him, and he eyed her with renewed intent.

"When you get in there, in the very beginning, don't leave the pedestal you're on until the countdown ends. There's... Explosives around each one that deactivate as soon as the timer reaches zero."

"Ah... Alright."

"You'll see the cornucopia right away, and everything good will be right at the mouth. There's packs and bags around the outside, but by a certain distance away, the stuff inside starts to become... Questionable in value."

"What should I do then?"

"Run, of course. If you think you're quick enough, go for a weapon, but, if you falter... Honestly, just get to a backpack, and get away from the cornucopia as fast as you can."

She blew a breath out between her lips. _I've seen that many times before... Certain people just flee. Not a bad idea, bec-_

"I know you've seen what happens if you stick around. It turns into a bloodbath every time. Don't get caught up in it."

She nodded, and the elevator ground to a halt, opening its doors a second later and revealing an expected blast of sunlight, and then a huge, metal object in the distance met their eyes. A hovercraft, growling with energy, awaited on its landing gear over a flat expanse of concrete before them, and after a hesitation, the two of them stepped out of the doorway, and Alyssa eyed her Capitolite mentor as he faced her.

"I don't know what the arena is going to be like, because they make a point to keep it secret... But I honestly doubt its going to be anything like District Three. Stay alert, and don't do anything too risky."

Uneasy smiles were traded, and then they squeezed together in an awkward one-armed hug.

"I know you and Oliver have talked about working together, but... Be careful, okay?"

Turning and stepping away as he shook her shoulder, a shudder coursed across her backside as she tromped forward with ever-reluctant footfall, squinting from the reflected glare of the midday sun on the aircraft's angular surfaces.

_First the train, and now... One of these._

Fingers reaching out and grasping the handrail of a lowered stairwell, she clambered up with individual clanks of boots on metal steps, hoisting herself inside through a hatch and finding a seat away from the two female occupants already on board and buckled in. Watching with morbid interest as the rest of the twelve seats were filled up by other female tributes in a steady arrival, a dozen teenage girls of varying age, race, and height traded a variety of fearful and sinister glances as they sat, knowing that a short length of time remained before them and a dozen more boys were going to spill each other's blood.

_Yep. This a damn nightmare. I really don't want to kill anyone here... But a few of them might want to kill me. Kill or be killed... No matter who you are, or what you do, or where you're from._

Squirming as the hovercraft's engine spooled up with the steady roar of a giant turbine, her insides sank again as the occupants gained unseen elevation and tilted forward.

_Flying, oof. Not liking this... At all._

* * *

An unknown passage of time and distance later, with several on board staring emptily and breathing heavy, the machine began to descend, and Alyssa's stomach rose into her throat instead, only for the craft to jerk downward, settling onto its landing gear.

_The train was a lot better than this experience... My poor gut... Arms are tingly too._

The door in the side opened and a folded stairwell extended to the ground, but then an adult woman climbed inside and walked around with a sizable needle, beginning to inject something into each tribute's forearm.

_What... Is that?_

"Your tracker."

Hearing the same query spoken and promptly answered, Alyssa looked up as the woman stopped before her, twisting her arm over without hesitation, and sticking the metal shaft in, prompting an immediate wince from the piercing of her flesh.

_That's, oww, lovely._

Staring at the little electronic tablet as it blinked momentarily with a small white light, before going dark beneath her skin, she frowned from the visible lack of blood.

_Keeping track of us._

Rolling her eyes, her attention flitted aside as the restraints of one seated tribute were undone, and the solitary individual vanished from sight. Proceeding out of the hovercraft several minutes apart from each other, the buckles of her own restraint were undone, and she heaved herself upright with a grunt, hurrying towards the hatch.

_Finally getting out of this... Thing._

Footfall slowing as she stepped off the metal stairwell, she promptly discovered she was underground on a large circular landing pad with one large hallway leading away from it. Walking towards the hallway with repeated glances around herself, two peacekeepers joined her as soon as she entered the corridor, walking alongside and leading her into a separate hallway, which led to several more that wound left and right.

_This is just like the training center. Could get lost in a place like this._

Light fixtures above buzzed noisily, keeping the stark interior of the concrete pathways dimly lit as the trio of footsteps echoed down them. Then, after one last turn, a door was opened by one of the peacekeepers, and with a push inside on both of her shoulders, she winced as the passage was slammed shut behind, and a lock engaged.

_That's..._

Suddenly finding one of her stylists was waiting patiently at the desk inside the cramped room, she eyed the colorful individual as he rose to his feet in greeting.

"Alyssa."

Moving forward from his beckoning as he freed a black nylon jacket from its hanger, the stylist turned to her once more.

"You might need this."

Draping it over her shoulders, she slowly stuck her arms through the sleeves, pulling it on and zipping up the front. Standing still as he adjusted the jacket with several tugs and brushes of his fingers, the stylist sighed sadly, before grasping one of her hands with both of his.

"We may have only known you for a week... But we're so proud that we were blessed with such a wonderful, lovely tribute like you."

She closed her eyes, simply answering with a nod of acceptance.

"We're going to miss you... It's been an honor to make you look your finest for the Capitol."

"Thirty. Seconds."

Her eyes flicked open from the introduced electronic voice, and she looked over at the glass tube in the corner of the room, staring warily at the small shaft as the stylist simply moved aside. Watching with silence as she began to visibly shake, her attention then drifted further to a timer mounted on the room's wall, displayed a steadily decreasing row of numerals.

"Twenty. Seconds."

_Uh. Shit._

"You'd better get in there."

Silent fear gripped her as she nodded, and her feet rose and fell with extreme resistance, taking step after step until her boots clunked onto the metal plate inside the glass tube.

"Ten. Seconds."

Her heart pounded, clearly audible inside her head. _Maybe even outside of my head too._

Looking up, and then turning around, the room's only other occupant offered a small, hopeful smile as he watched her.

"Good luck out there!"

A strange sliding noise began, and then, the glass closed shut in front of her, blocking out all outside sound. Automatically reaching forward and touching the glass, her eyes blasted wide open as the plate beneath her began to rise upward, pushing her up slowly until the room disappeared. Head turning in all directions, finally settling on the steel plate she stood upon, bright light began to fill the tube from above, and for a moment, she closed her eyes, mind racing with fragments of thought.

Then, the plate below clicked to a stop, and a breath silently parted her lips as the caress of a breeze met her face, playfully brushing tufts of hair along her neck.


	7. Chapter 7

Bright light. And then, as her newly opening eyes adjusted, bright colors filtered into her vision.

_Fall colors. Blue sky._

Heart pounding steadily with fear of the unknown, her attention was immediately drawn to the tail of a massive golden horn, reaching for the sky and sparkling with temptation.

_That's the, um, Cornucopia. Okay._

Flicking left and right, she took fleeting glimpses of the pale white trees surrounding the clearing, decorated with vibrant splashes of yellow, brown and red.

_Aspen...? Yeah. Aspen trees everywhere. Leaves all over the place, and this big mountain._

Leaning aside ever-so-slightly, her eyes squinted from the sight of something perched up high upon it in the far distance, only for a holographic number to materialize on top of the cornucopia in front of it, beginning a countdown from 50, with every second marked by an ominous drum-like rumble beneath her feet.

_Uh._

Her breath sharpened, and she looked around at the tributes that flanked her on both sides, many of whom were doing one last safe trade of glances. A certain blonde was nowhere in sight, and she swallowed.

_Of course. Where is he?_

**40.**

Growing tense, she shivered as a cool breeze flicked her hair around and brushed the nylon fabric against her skin.

_Thank goodness for this jacket, actually. Something tells me its not going to be very warm... With the way things look here._

Her eyes rose back into the sky, and she watched clusters of clouds above as they drifted across the open blue air.

_Even if this is an arena... Its Spring. How are these trees looking like this when its not even Fall?_

**30.**

Parting her lips with an exhale, her eyes sifted through the packs and objects scattered in varying places across the ground.

_Whatever. Not important. What is important... These bags. There's a lot around, but... Wait... I'm staring at the tail of the cornucopia. Weapons are at the mouth. Weapons are valuable._

Swallowing, her skin crawled in a shudder of realization.

_There are no weapons in sight. Not even a knife or anything little... I am in the wrong place to start._

**20.**

_Dammit! Less than twenty seconds! What did Mark say? He said run. Grab something if I'm fast, then get away. Am I fast enough? Stupid! That's a terrible thing to wonder about now!_

Staring at the holographic number, her chest heaved with fearful respiration.

_Well, there's only one way to find out, right? Why can't there be two ways? There's gotta be a way to get a weapon if you can't beat people to the mouth, right?_

**10.**

_Ohhh, everyone is gearing up to run. What else do we do?_

_We run. Run. Run me, you can run. Maybe not as fast as some, but I can..._

Her eyes flicked back to the timer, and her thoughts stopped, filling the silence with the thump of each second.

**5.**

**4.**

**3.**

**2.**

**1.**

**0.**

_Run._

Springing off the outer edge of the circular platform, her feet came in contact with the leaf-strewn ground, and she found herself sprinting as fast as she could muster alongside everybody else, directly towards the cornucopia.

_A deadly race. What do they call this... Survival of the, ah, fittest?_

Nearing the tail, with blurs of bodies passing in several errant headings, darting around the golden structure, she turned left, only to watch as a spear hurtled past in the distance, and somebody to the left fell with a cry of pain.

_People are already at the mouth! People already have weapons! How the hell?!_

Putting on the brakes for a sudden change of direction, only to find that the leaves below didn't agree, her feet slid out from underneath her, and somebody jumped right over her a second after she realized she was now facing the sky. Frantically shoving herself back upright and dashing back towards the tail, she ducked beneath the shadow of the twinkling gold sculpture, promptly getting a passing glimpse of somebody being shoved and audibly stabbed against it. Eyes darting over towards the mouth of the cornucopia with morbid curiosity, spurts of blood were flung aloft from slashes as several separate brawls ensued, and varying glints and impacts of steel objects mingled with young, guttural screams of horror, blood lust, and agony.

Tearing her vision away from the scene, a pair of backpacks sat in the distance just ahead, and she leaned lower, storming towards the realized opportunity.

_Two backpacks. Should I?_

A boy entered her vision. _The district, um, Seven kid? And he's with an axe, uh, heading for my... Dammit! I can't just change my mind again, but..._

Adrenaline coursed through her as she turned toward him instead, purposefully charging into the boy with little time for him to block an entire body ramming into him. With an abrupt shoulder impact and two sharp grunts later, she found herself twirling into a tumble down to the ground. Momentarily dazed from the collision, she rolled over with a shake of her head and hopped upright, assessing the new situation.

_Backpacks. Where's... Oh hell, he's coming for the axe! Its right there!_

Her eyes widened seeing the same boy lurch forward on all fours, but just as he stumbled up onto his feet, reaching for the weapon lying on the ground, she jumped forward and stomped onto the weapon's flat blade, pinning it down with her own weight as he attempted to yank it free. Resisting his resulting shove with a flurry of leaves from a backward sliding boot, her fist swung into his face, immediately met with a blast of pain on her knuckles. Gasping as somebody screamed nearby, the boy recoiled, cupping his nose that began to produce blood, and she reached down, stepping off of the weapon and hastily attempting to jerk the axe from his weakened grip. Teeth gritting as he pulled it back in response, she swung her leg up and delivered a kick straight into his gut, knocking him backward and causing his arm to slacken, jerking the shaft free from his fingers and sending Alyssa stumbling back in a near loss of balance.

_Damn, you..._

Clutching the double-bit weapon in both hands and whirling around hastily, her eyes only fell upon one remaining backpack, and the alarming thought of someone unseen near their struggle brought her into a furious charge towards the remaining object. Noticing then that several shouts and screams seemed to be coming closer, she slid to an awkward halt on her knee beside the bag, clutching the strap and hoisting it upright in a hurried attempt to regain purchase with the slippery ground cover.

_Feet, come on, let's, just, gooo!_

Something sharp stuck into a tree nearby with an ominous twang, and a sickening slicing of flesh mingled with moans of agony behind, kicking her legs into overdrive as she swung the backpack's straps loosely over her shoulders, finding traction under her feet and fleeing into the foliage ahead, gripping the axe just under its black steel blade as she ran for her life.

Crashing through thin bushes, with unseen twigs snapping from hurried footsteps, distant jeers echoed between the blurs of white trunks and a colorful variety of leaves. Taking a turn around a large boulder and storming just past a small pond, the ground sunk into a small rocky gully. Skidding to a halt in the valley with a shuffle of gravel and loose river rocks, a small animal swiftly departed the area, and Alyssa sank low, looking for the source of the sound with alarm, only to tuck herself under a stone ledge when footsteps sped past, not very far away.

_Whatever that was... I don't blame you for leaving. I'm running scared too._

Lungs fit to burst as she held her breath for a short period, she sank to the ground, hands settling onto a smooth round rock below as she began gasping, taking in lungfuls of the cold, sweet air.

_Yes. Nothing like District Three at all. Not a factory or tenement in sight. Just a lot of nature. A lot of trees. A lot of running._

Regaining steady breath under the small shadow of the overhang, she then glanced left and right at the rock-strewn gully, leading down to an apparent water source.

_Somebody was fooled a moment ago. But there was more than one person pursuing me... I think._

Lifting the axe in her grasp upward, inspecting the weapon's construction and seeing a faint reflection against the blade's black surface, her lips parted from the deadly acquisition.

_Axe. A weapon, and a tool. Got you, and got a backpack... Just barely. Had to fight for this thing first... And I sure got lucky with how much I was slipping and sliding in these damn leaves._

Tempted to investigate the pack on her shoulders, she sat upright, only to freeze when a jumble of footsteps turned into a scream, a choking gargle and then a sweeping resumption of silence. Eyes flitting up to the sky beyond the outcropping, listening to an eerie rustle of local foliage, no further sounds arose beyond the wayward wind.

_That sounded close. That's bad._

Taking her own cue, she cautiously clambered out of the gully, keeping her head on a swivel as she walked, with no semblance of direction. Weaving around several more trees, a small gasp caught her attention, and her boot suddenly found the limb of a body.

_Oh, uh..._

Looking down, her mouth shot open, but then she noticed a small boy staring at her from a startlingly short distance away, holding shakily onto the shaft of a spear, its tip soaked with blood.

_Shit._

Retracting her step, her grip tightened on her axe as she made the connection, seeing blood oozing from the neck of...

_Glint?_

The sight repulsed her, and she continued backing away from the realized threat, only to find that the child had already turned and begun to run away, vanishing into the woods.

_Uh, that... Kid just killed a... Career._

Turning a different direction and quickly leaving behind the body in a hasty jog, she shook her head from the flashes of violent imagery seen only minutes before.

_Guess I should expect anything now. He could have tried to stick me a moment ago, who knows.  
_

Hopping over the gnarled remains of a fallen log, she began to realize the land was slowly rising uphill in front of her, slowing to a pause. Then, hearing traces of footsteps, her skin crawled, spooked.

_That better not be him again...!_

Stepping around with paranoia, she suddenly recoiled as a sizable blade swung towards her, nipping the side of her abdomen and slicing into the fabric of her backpack, causing her to gasp sharply as a female figure then curled her arm and forcefully shoulder-checked her. Tumbling onto the ground, gasping from a stinging sensation blooming on her side and the confident approach of vaguely familiar brunette girl, Alyssa scrambled upright, barely halting a slash of an incoming blade with the shaft of the steel axe before turning and fleeing.

"Coward!"

Thinking quickly after several strides of initial terror, Alyssa suddenly stopped, turned around, and charged towards the opponent with the axe held high in both hands, glimpsing a brief gape of genuine concern on her opponent from the swiftly approaching hazard. Attempting a dodge and suddenly finding herself knocked into a spin from the surprise collision of limbs, both young women sprawled onto the forest floor with a crashing of dry foliage.

"You son of a-."

Scrambling over and bodily pouncing onto the opponent, Alyssa succeeded in slamming her back down onto the ground. Met with a burst of strength however, she jerked upward and tried to tear her off of her backside in a frenzied struggle as the blade, realized to be a machete, dangerously swung around beside them in blind slashes. With legs kicking and arms flailing, both of the girls wrestled for supremacy, thrashing about on the carpet of leaves in a back-and-forth attempt to gain an upper hand. Realizing the presence of her own axe laying a short distance beside both of them, Alyssa stomped on the girl's forearm, ceasing the blade's swipes, and hurriedly leaning outward, pulling the tool close and shoving it against the brunette's neck with one hand as she knelt forcefully between her shoulder blades. Trying desperately to pry the machete from her grip with her other hand, fingernails digging into skin, the wielder stiffened in an growl of anger as the hilt was pried from her fingers. Grasping the tumbling blade on accident in an attempt to cast it aside, Alyssa's hand instantly protested as the blackened steel happily nipped into her fingers as she weakly threw the weapon into the distance, using her now-bleeding free hand to grab the girl's hair and jerk her head down sideways with a strong tug. Pressing the blade of the axe tightly under her chin, the tribute struggled, gritting her teeth and staring at Alyssa furiously, who was staring down at the tribute herself in a fleeting position of advantage, both of them gasping with labored breath.

"You... If you... Follow me, and attack me again... I will kill you."

Pushing the axe blade tighter against her neck for emphasis, their expressions both darkened.

"...I'll cut you open, so you can watch your life bleed right out of you."

A rough laugh escaped the girl's throat from the threat.

"Do it."

"I will. If I ever encounter you again."

Alyssa's eyes narrowed as their repugnant staring contest ended, with the captive opponent beneath shaking her head.

"You won't... Weakling. Scared to kill me right now, aren't you?"

Alyssa's face twisted into a scowl, and she moved the axe up to the girl's exposed shoulder, and in one concise motion, dug the weapon's pointed tip into her skin and slowly sliced into her shoulder's flesh.

_Hoolllyyyy... Hell._

Surprised by the rapid appearance of blood from the gash, and then visible twist of horrific pain on the opponent beneath, the girl produced an awful cry of exasperation, and after a quick glance left and right, Alyssa sprung upright from the subdued tribute, fleeing into a hasty flight from the scene.

_I'm just going to let you deal with that, because something tells me somebody else is watching...!_

Storming up the hillside in an erratic path that grew progressively steeper, rougher and rockier, she repeatedly inspected her bleeding fingers, and then looked towards the sky, realizing the sun now sat behind an increasing cover of clouds.

_Weather's changing already... How long has it been since we started? An hour? Or maybe a few minutes cause I'm all worked up...?_

Hand curling into a fist, fingers stinging with expected pain, she hiked onward, frequently glancing behind with paranoia.

_Whatever. All that matters right now, is that I'm alive. Two fights and a lot of running later, I'm somehow alive..._

* * *

Negotiating an unnervingly narrow ledge with carefully placed footfall, the presence of a small cave was revealed, tucked into the mossy rock walls that she had discovered on her ascent. With no visible change in the day or weather, and not much noise besides her own footsteps, Alyssa ducked into the low opening, brushing out a small amount of natural debris with her good hand and setting the axe aside as she sprawled out on a small flat spot.

_Maybe now I can stop moving._

Looking at her wounded palm, stained with splotches of blood running from cuts in four fingers, she flexed the digits, greeted with a chorus of expected pain. Blinking in remembrance, she shifted, feeling the side of her rib cage and discovering her clothing was sticky and had a small cut through all layers.

_Oof. That can't be good._

Shoving herself upright with a groan and taking the backpack off, she stared at it with alarm, realizing the front of it was hanging limp, cut well open by a machete that could have sliced her innards open instead.

_Yikes._

Setting the bag aside and unzipping the black jacket, a furrow of concern grew when it peeled away from her side, and she watched as the shirt beneath became unstuck, with more blood visible around her wound. Fingers unhappily investigating it, finding it to be a simple laceration instead of the expected gouge, a sigh seeped from her lungs.

_Okay. I'm not dying, and it already stopped._

Looking up out of the cave's opening to the outside world, still met with only a whisper of passing wind, she hoisted the backpack over, at first attempting to unzip it, before resigning to simply reaching into the tear in the front, pulling out anything that greeted her fingers.

First was a stainless steel vial, filled with a clear liquid. _Something medical?_

She set the vial aside, which rolled aside with a brief clatter, and fished out a strange, shiny black rock. Eyes poring over the jagged surfaces of the rock, her thumb brushed across numerous ridges on it.

_There has to be a reason for this to be in here._

Setting the stone softly aside and digging into the pack again, she winced as another metal object dug into her wounded fingers. Pulling it out, she discovered the metal latch to a heavy, squat bottle.

_Water?_

Popping the lid open, dipping a finger in and discovering a lack of immediate taste, she exhaled with pleasant surprise.

_Water!_

Wetting her lips with a splash of the liquid, and then snapping the latch shut again, she set it beside the vial. Fingers returning to the bag and digging around more, she discovered a package of square crackers, a small bundle of red and green apples tied together in a net, and... _An empty container._

Furrowing her eyebrows, she inspected the object's transparent sides and lid.

_Again... Probably in here for a reason._

Tugging out a black wad of padded material and unfurling it, discovering a tear in the middle, several turns revealed the presence of a zipper, and recognition identified the object as a sleeping bag. Investigating the hole, finding the liner inside to be soft, and quite inviting as she touched it repeatedly, she took her jacket off and knelt down, spreading the bag out on the floor of the cave and unzipping it.

_Even with a tear, this is a nice surprise, holy crap._

Quite tempted to snuggle up inside, she resisted the thought and grabbed her backpack, tossing it to the back of the cave. Noisily popping the lid of the container back open, she paused, listening to her surroundings, and then placed the bottle, rock, and crackers inside. Setting the net of apples atop the plastic lid, curiosity arose as her hand hovered over the vial of liquid, lifting it into her grasp and unscrewing the lid. Cautiously tilting it, pausing with hesitation, a small amount dribbled into a puddle into her palm.

_Okay. If this is what I think it might be, let's see what happens, uh..._

Touching her side with the handful of mystery fluid, the wound immediately began to sting, and she inhaled sharply as she pressed her fingers against the cut, rubbing them around.

_Ouch, damn. Sure hope this isn't toxic somehow._

Teeth clamping together, she inspected the cut with a lift of her fingers, now bubbling with foam.

_Nope. Bubbles mean some kind of peroxide. Good. Probably should... Do the fingers too._

Pouring another puddle into her bloodied palm, pressing her cut fingers into the liquid, they began to sting as the cuts began to foam, and she stared at the chemical reaction on her own digits with a grimace, nostrils flaring in controlled, pain-addled breath. A short time later, however, a sweeping cooling sensation greeted all five of the wounds, and she shivered as she screwed the lid back onto the vial and dropped it back into the plastic container.

_Cold air, cold wind, cold skin, and cold wounds._

Cutting the net of apples open against the blade of the axe and retrieving one, she bundled her jacket into a ball and shuffled inside the sleeping bag, sinking her teeth into the fruit as she drug the makeshift pillow up beneath her head. Chewing and swallowing the bite, she lay still as warmth slowly built up inside the bag.

_As long as nobody wanders along that ledge... I don't think anyone will even know I'm here._

Her vision rose up to the rough, curved ceiling a few feet above her head, and she bit into the apple again.

_Good._

***BANG***

Lurching upright in a start, from the echoing report meeting her ears, she stared out into the distant cloudy sky.

***BANG***

_Oh that's, um, cannon fire._

***BANG***

***BANG***

_The dead are finally being counted._

***BANG***

_And families are already crying._

***BANG***

***BANG***

***BANG***

***BANG***

_Sheesh. Nine gone already._

***BANG***

_Ten._

***BANG***

_Eleven..._

Waiting in silence, no more blasts of distant cannon echoed through the air, and a groan seeped from her throat.

_Eleven tributes dead, out of twenty four. Almost half the whole field gone... And still an overcast sky._

Her head sank down, and eyelids flopping shut once more.

_Time to rest._

* * *

_M-Music...?_

The blaring overture of the Capitol's unmistakable anthem filled the air, pulling Alyssa out of another light sleep, and introducing her to the darkness of night.

_What on earth are they playing this for?_

Blinking as trumpets began to wail on the recording, she then blinked with realization.

_Oh. Showing everyone the fallen tributes. This should tell me if Oliver..._

Quickly sitting up and crawling forward, she peeked out of the mouth of the cave, warily eying the ledge beside herself before laying prone on her forearms. Up in the sky, almost out of sight among the trees, a white light appeared with the seal of Panem, and the words 'The Fallen' showed briefly. Then, portraits began to show;

_Glint, from District 1._

_The girl from District 4._

_Both tributes from District 5._

_The boy from District 7._

_Both girls from District 9 and District 10._

_Both tributes from District 11, and then both from District 12._

The anthem faded, the seal vanished, and the low ambiance of crickets and other night creatures resumed as Alyssa blew a relieved breath from her lungs.

_Seems Oliver's still alive. Just a matter of finding him now... Maybe._

Retreating back into the dark void of the little cave and settling onto her back again, she rearranged the jacket pillow, taking another bite out of the slowly-browning apple as she tucked herself inside the sleeping bag again, covering her head.

_Tomorrow... Keep moving up the mountain, and hopefully find more water. No way I'm heading back down there any time soon._


	8. Chapter 8

A deep and distant rumble entered Alyssa's ears, forcing her eyes open. Then, a short moment later, a flicker of light bloomed into the darkness of the cave, and she pushed herself upright with her elbows, greeted by crackling, and then an ominous melody of echoing roars. Instead of a cannon or explosion, her ears were filled with thunder from above, booming from the thick layer of clouds in the sky that blanketed everything beneath in a shroud of darkness.

_Morning?_

Groggily escaping the sleeping bag and pulling on the wadded-up coat, she sat back after zipping it up, stilling herself for a moment as the land was brightened by another momentary illumination, and blasted with another round of thunder.

_Has to be morning. My body won't let me sleep more than twelve hours... And this isn't exactly the best time or place to do that anyway._

Crawling forward on her knees, peeking out of the cave up into the sky, silent silhouettes of trees reached up to the gloom floating over the landscape, and in the distance, a spot of lighter grey hid the sun, a horizon across from where it had previously set.

_Morning. Thought so._

Shivering from the errant crackles of natural electrical discharge, she shuffled aside and rolled up the sleeping bag, snapping the lid shut on the plastic container and retrieving the previously-thrown backpack, unzipping it and shoving everything inside. Staring at the tear in the front after fumbling with a zipper, with its contents visible inside, her lips pursed in contemplation.

_Both of those buckle straps are ruined, but these two have potential..._

Reaching over and plucking the axe from the floor, cutting a gash into the middle of the bag's top flap with concerning ease, she pulled it down and fed the remaining straps through the hole, tying their ends together in a temporary knot. Jerking both the flap and the straps in opposite directions, the knot held, and the flap covered the tear effectively, held tightly against the pack.

_There. Should be good for now._

Slinging the pack over her shoulder, jostling it around some as a further test, she hummed with accomplishment.

_See? All that knot tying during training, actually pays off._

Shuffling forward in a peek out of the cave, taking one last look back inside and spotting only the decaying apple core, she rose to her feet, venturing cautiously back along the ledge.

_Mm, I don't actually know how far up I am._

Another flash of lightning lit up the path, and she timidly navigated the teasingly illuminated ledge, hands clutching several parts of the wall until her boots began to encounter clumps of grass. Finding herself on a more navigable slope of the mountain, promptly luring her eyes upward along the land's dark silhouettes against the sky, something shuffled in the trees behind, and she stormed into forward motion, running up the hill.

_Probably a bird or a squirrel, but, not about to take any chances..._

Scaling the broken fragments of a boulder, moving on her hands and feet up a steep slope just beyond, she sighed from the ceaseless ascent ahead, turning in place and looking outward at the dark spread of foliage scattered beyond. Noticing and watching the silhouette of a distant bird circling in the sky, her eyes lazily lowered to the ground, but then to her alarm, discovered the slow movements of a human silhouette, heading up along the slope below in a steady hike.

_Whoa, where did you come from?_

Scrambling backwards and turning around, a sizable rock was kicked free from the broken boulder and began to happily tumble down the hillside. With each bounce clearly audible as it passed the figure below, the individual paused their movements with curiosity, and then looked up towards the source - Which caused Alyssa to storm up the rock in abject terror.

_Shit!_

Something metal ricocheted twice somewhere behind, and she diverted to the side and struggled up the face of another small boulder, encountering a field of large broken chunks of rock just beyond. Ducking around one and pressing against its flank, ceasing any further sounds besides her shallow breath, the approach of hurried footfall filled the otherwise silent air.

_Bad. This is bad._

An eerie crackle of thunder sounded in the distance, and a weary male voice grunted among labored breath.

"I know you're here!"

Her eyes grew wide as boots carelessly kicked sediment and tufts of grass, and her hands slid down to the polymer grip on the axe.

_Enemy, uh, closing in, uhh..._

Waiting for his continued footfall, she sidestepped, moving alongside the rock and keeping her head low, but then froze, alarmed by the resumption of silence. Fingers firmly gripping the contours of the handle, her eyes warily watched the edge of the rock.

_Something's about to happen, and someone..._

Another flash, another crackle of thunder, and her hair stood on end. Footsteps resumed, and she looked to the right warily, unable to identify which direction they were coming from. Then, a shadow appeared in the corner of her eye, and she turned her head, suddenly gasping as the dimly lit profile of a tribute appeared a few feet away. As soon as he began to withdraw a knife, startled by her intake of breath, Alyssa stomped over and swung her arms around in a speedy arc, and with a disturbing squish of cleaved flesh, the black blade of the double bit axe halted, buried into his stomach.

The knife simply fell from his fingers as he looked down, and Alyssa's lips dropped open beneath already-wide eyes. He coughed, and blood began to dribble out of his mouth, coursing down his neck and onto his shirt as his breathing turned into choking convulsions. After a moment of attempted speech, he fell backwards, and the axe sickeningly jerked back out of him, leaving it dripping with a coat of blood as his body crumpled to rest on the rocky ground.

Alyssa stared at the corpse, the wide gash in his stomach, and then at the weapon in her hands in sequential increases of horror.

_Oh, my._

A blast of cannon roared across the sky, and her insides churned in disgust, her mind replaying the rapid scene in vivid, permanent detail.

_I just killed him._

Swallowing, with her tongue turning sour and tainting the passing breaths, she wiped both sides of the axe against a tuft of grass on the ground, before mustering steps forward and breaking into a stumbling run.

_I have to get out of here. Fast._

Wandering haplessly through the dimly illuminated forest, growing dizzy from left-and-right glances at passing blurs of trunks, her movements slowed as a tingling sensation crept along her hands, up through her arms, finally causing her to stop and sink to her knees, dropping the axe aside. Hands flopping onto the ground as her head grew light, she stared at the rough dirt below, mind silencing as she began convulsing in dry heaves. After what seemed like an empty reaction, her insides found what they were looking for, and she began vomiting repeatedly.

Throat and mouth burning, producing several coughs as her insides rejected the remains of prior meals, she tearfully spat at the ground, and slowly sat upright, swallowing repeatedly as she tried to rid her mouth of her own stomach acid. Pushing herself up and stumbling along miserably, tripping over several unseen objects with blurry vision, she sank down and came to rest against the uneven trunk of a tree, tremoring.

_I just killed somebody. Not even an adult. Some kid that's probably not even my age. Chasing me, and pulling a knife as soon as he found me... Intent on killing me. So I killed him out of self defense._

Her eyes sank.

_I killed somebody to keep myself alive._

She brought her legs up, and wrapped her arms tightly around them, looking over towards the bloodied axe laying on the ground nearby. Then, with blinks of surprise, a bird dropped to the ground nearby and hopped about in the leaves, poking around for insects, and then inspecting her vomit with mild curiosity.

_A Mockingjay?_

A gust of wind blew through and sent many leaves flying and twirling, and the bird took flight and vanished. Her eyes then wandered upward, and she sighed.

_Maybe its time I fly away too._

* * *

Allowing her feet to lead her somewhere as she stumbled along, mind clouded with twisted, relapsing visions, Alyssa plodded along the broad side of a mountain, with all senses but her hearing otherwise numbed.

_Rocks. Trees. Dead and falling leaves... Nothing seems to change anywhere I go. Trapped in this windy, autumnal hell with no way to tell anything from... Anything._

Looking out through dozens of trunks spreading into the distance, she paused, realizing the prior roaring of thunder above had all but ceased.

_How big are these arenas?_

Looking around, only to sit down and cross her legs, a deep breath pulled in through her nose. Leaves swirled around, and with childlike curiosity, she scooped armfuls from around herself onto her lap, burying her legs under a sizable pile. Then after a moment, she blinked.

_Oh hey, camouflage. Everyone said leaves make great camouflage._

Flopping onto her back, shoving her backpack aside and spreading more of the dry and detached foliage onto herself, she watched as some blew away, only to be casually replaced by others wandering past, swept by the wind.

_At night, it would be almost impossible to notice somebody laying under a blanket of leaves. Unless you stepped on them. In that case, either you or them would already be a goner._

In light of her conclusion, a raindrop splattered upon her cheekbone, and she looked up at the sky as the pattering of falling water on the leaves grew steadily audible.

_Rain? Maybe the thunderstorm had a purpose after all._

Rising to her feet, brushing leaves off her jacket and pants, her attention outwardly wandered as branches swayed from the breezes, and a steady increase of rainfall began upon her surroundings, prompting her to look back up into the sky.

_Should probably keep moving._

Pulling the hood of her jacket over her head and tucking her hands inside the sleeves, she trudged forward in a slow pace along the side of the mountain.

_Elevation's desirable, but being familiar with the forest is good too. Especially if you have to run and hide somewhere in a hurry._

* * *

Standing still, arms crossed beneath the thin cover of a orange-brown aspen tree, Alyssa swallowed, throat soothed by the remainder of water inside the stubby metal bottle that now sat open in her hand.

_At least there's rain..._

Stepping out from under the tree's branches and holding the bottle out, she waited patiently as a fraction of the rainfall found its way inside the small neck of the container. One gulp later, she sighed and continued walking, holding the bottle upright as she wound her way through the clutter of the forest floor, slick with water. An unseen drop caused her to yelp as her foot slipped and was then soaked by a gushing stream of water, and she pulled her boot back out, startled by the surprise, but then curious as her eyes followed the stream uphill.

_There's water._

Snapping the lid shut on the bottle and stowing it with a wrestle of her backpack's flaps, she then turned and trudged up the hillside, following the water's winding path as it cut through the soil and wandered around rocks and tufts of plants.

_This is a good sign._

Hiking up into the bottom of a low, rough and steep-sided canyon, beginning a clumsy negotiation of numerous slippery rocks, she looked further, realizing with disappointment as the stream seemed to trickle into nothing.

_...Or not. Nothing but the rain's work._

Surveying the area, her eyes wandered up along the dribble of a consistent waterfall, flowing from a ridge just above a narrow hollow in the rock. Stepping closer with a squint, standing on her toes, she gasped with discovery.

_A cave!_

Hurrying up to the wall and testing the jagged rocks with several pulls of her hands, she then hoisted herself up, boots finding delicate perches on the rough rock wall, causing her to toss the axe in hand up onto the ledge above, freeing her wounded fingers. Another step upward though, and the next foothold simply broke loose from the wall, forcing her to clutch her wet handholds in alarm as her foot found another spot. Shoving and pulling herself further upward, the waterlogged ascent turned into a bodily shuffle, struggling up and over the ledge. Finally hoisting herself onto her feet, she eyed the newly revealed hollow in the rock.

_Well... Its longer and narrower, but it looks dry. Plus..._

Retrieving the previously emptied metal bottle and popping the lid open, she daintily held it out under the waterfall, watching as it was filled, and began to overflow within moments.

_This._

After one cautious sip, she began to gulp it down, consuming it all within moments.

_I don't care if this isn't boiled... Its cold, and available._

Snapping the lid shut and setting the bottle down, her fingers hesitantly lifted the axe, holding it at arm's length and bringing it to the small waterfall, watching with a grimace as the formerly dried blood began to wash free, finally vanishing from sight.

_Too bad you can't wash memories away this easily..._

Setting the weapon aside with a clatter and rinsing her own hands, she then discovering the healing of the cuts on her fingers.

_Oh, whoa._

Unzipping her jacket and throwing it aside, she then began an inspection of the cut in her side, gently padding the shirt with damp fingers. With blood migrating from the cloth to her hand, she wet the shirt more and then squeezed it, watching as a trace of blood squeezed right out of it. Repeating the process, wiping her own skin with wet fingers, the pale skin of her side was wiped free with several passes and rinses, revealing the slowly healing wound along one of her ribs.

_Yeah. Had my bones not been there... Probably wouldn't be so lucky._

Releasing the shirt, she turned and inspected the diagonal wall above the ledge, finding a lone stick and using it to sweep stray stones aside, casting them away with brief clatters into the canyon below Tapping the stubby branch on the rock below, she dropped the stick beside the axe, suddenly grimacing as the ache of her feet and sharp hunger set in.

_Now you want food...?_

Rolling her eyes, she began pulling apart the backpack's knotted straps.

_Make up your mind, stomach._

Unrolling the sleeping bag, balling up the jacket inside out and pulling both boots off, she plopped onto her rear, opening the package of crackers. Putting one inside her mouth, she carefully chewed and swallowed it, waiting for a reaction from inside, only to be met with an eventual grumble. Consuming another cracker, she then closed the package, storing it inside the container.

_Gotta make those last..._

Spotting the net of apples again, a sighed issued after a swallow.

_The first one didn't stand a chance._

Plucking another fruit from the bundle, setting it on a flat spot of the sleeping bag, she reached over with a groan, bringing the axe to her lap. With a pause of immediate reluctance, she used the opposite blade of the axe to cut the apple in half - Which it did with still-worrying ease.

Picking up one of the halves, she then eyed the dark steel weapon that sat in her lap as she bit into the apple.

_This thing is stupidly sharp... And I need to tie this onto my bag or something to free up my hands. Somehow._

Another bite, met with a gust of wind through the rainfall, she tingled with a shiver. Setting the weapon in her lap aside, she crawled down into the sleeping bag, huddling inside and eating the apple.

_In the meantime... Lets just stay warm, and hide._


	9. Chapter 9

A blonde boy stood, face cast with an everlasting stare, as Caesar Flickerman lifted his hand into the air with his trademark grin and laugh.

" _Oliver Allen, this year's victor, of the fifty-seventh annual Hunger Games!_ "

* * *

_Agh, oww._

Twisting as pain crept into her backside, forcing her completely out of sleep, Alyssa's eyes opened as she was thrust back into reality. Sitting upright, reaching her arm back and massaging the ache, a turn of her head revealed the landscape beyond to be silent, dark, and shrouded in thick fog. Breathing a sigh as she held herself up with both of her arms, her brow furrowed from the smell of burning wood, only to be confirmed by the nearby crackle of flame.

_Um._

Leaning over towards the edge of the cave and looking around, a low glow further down the canyon below flickered and moved as wood audibly popped and snapped.

_Fire? Here?_

Retreating back into the folds of the sleeping bag, hiding and regaining warmth in silence, her eyelids settled shut once more.

_Even if the fire is an obvious distraction, there's still someone over there._

Head settling to the side, peeking out of the top of the bag, she watching the nearly-motionless gloom above.

_Fine. I'll just wait, and sleep, and... If anybody dies in the meantime, that cannon I heard earlier will have no trouble alerting me... Hopefully._

* * *

Reawakening to the same layer of fog, with teases of blue sky trying to fight through beyond, the morning sun's warmth lifted silent trails of vapor from the surfaces below. Stretching, and remembering the local visitor only hours before, Alyssa's mind groggily shifted into gear.

_We're leaving, so... Jacket on, bag rolled up, stuff inside container, container and bag inside backpack, backpack... On my back._

Zipping up the jacket, pulling on cold and damp boots and taking several large bites out of the remainder of the second apple, she chucked the core across the rocky channel after one last swallow. Gripping the axe, eying it with a moment of guilt before tucking her hand up under the blades, she stepped over to the far end of the narrow cave.

_Okay. Now to actually get back down this without... Being noticed._

Boot sinking to a small foothold below, and she daintily lowered herself further, swapping feet, and moving her other foot down against the wall, a few feet above the ground below. Positioning herself, she put one hand on the rock, the other propped against the rock wall, and her other foot cautiously floated in the air. With a small lean and push, she fell to the ground and landed squarely on her feet, hunkering down onto her palms and looking around at the still, steamy surroundings.

_Silent as a thief. Maybe._

Her head turned back from the continued crackle of firewood.

_Hmm. The fog's still thick enough..._

Unable to resist her own curiosity, she picked up one of countless stones from below. Sidling around several large rocks, attempting to keep her approach quiet and precise, she eased closer, pausing and hiding with increasing regularity. A distinct smell of charred coals greeted her nose, and she gripped the rock in her right hand, peeking around a sizable smooth boulder.

_Oh, that's the boy from District Four. Lu-something._

Watching the teen's sporadic movements, poking at the fire with a bandaged wrist and matted hair, she then noticed the pair of spears propped against the rock he sat on.

_Whatever your name... You're awful confident to have a fire going for so long._

Sinking down on her knees, arching back and throwing the rock high into the air, she remained still as the object disappeared from sight into the fog.

***CRACK***

After a moment, the rock's sharp impact pierced the air, and she smiled as the tribute grunted, and his attention went towards the source of the sound temporarily. Plucking another rock from the ground, smaller than before, she tossed it into the air with a swift jerk, waiting with wandering eyes. The low patter of stone beyond, the shuffle of footsteps on rock, and a clatter of metal falling to the ground filled her ears, and she peeked around the boulder, grinning in surprise as the boy walked cautiously away, gripping one of the spears in frustration.

_Ooh, time to move._

Sneaking around the rock, she sank down and crawled forward, coming up to the smoking pile of coals. The fallen object, being the second spear, sat useless on the ground, and she quickly perused the immediate area around the campfire.

_His backpack, this bowl, this chunk of metal... Aha! Rope!_

Grabbing the coiled bundle and sliding it up arm and over her sleeve, she glanced towards the boy beyond, only to find he was still walking.

_Good, just keep going that way, and..._

Peeking inside the bowl, blinking from the discovery of several burnt strips of meat, she delicately plucked one out, sticking it in her mouth and hastily leaving the scene.

_Don't mind if I do!_

Dodging around rock after rock, she moved with speed up the rising gully, sifting through the fading fog, and growing almost ecstatic with success as she stormed up through the weathered rock, finally escaping the cliff after several brief climbs. Pausing and properly biting into the chunk of the meat, she began to chew the ill-gotten gain, greeted with crispy, meaty goodness.

_This should hold me over for a bit, I think._

Continuing further up the hill, brushing into the shady cover of low growth after several minutes of running briskly, she sat down on the damp bed of leaves and quickly opened her backpack, tucking the remaining hunk of meat inside the container, and then redoing the knot and pulling the backpack straps over her shoulders again.

_Wish I could see that kid's face right now... I wonder if he's even noticed._

Rising onto her knees, taking the coil of rope off her arm and pulling it apart to its full length, she set it atop the axe.

_Maybe ten feet... Let's see..._

Seeing the rope upon the weapon, her mind then clicked.

_Oh, that's right!_

Picking up the braided fiber and wrapping it around her waist twice, tying a knot off on the right of her hip, she brought the axe up, tying a loop around the handle just below the blade. Securing both as tightly as possible, leaving two small tails of rope leftover, she jostled the weapon around and rose upright, stepping left and right.

_Hmm._

Tugging the axe up by the center of its blades, the glinting steel shaft slid out of the knot, ready for action.

_Awesome._

As a final test, she worked the handle back into the loop knot, and with a downward tug, the axe and rope largely stayed put, resting against the jacket above her right hip.

_Secure, convenient, and mostly out of the way._

Flinching from the rough scrape of branches somewhere above, and with several paranoid glances around, she stepped back into motion.

_Okay. Keep moving, me._

* * *

Stopping, taking a breath of increasingly cooler air, more of the mountain still rose into the sky before her. Scattered groups of trees were visibly smaller in height and fewer in number, and many were dead and devoid of leaves as the wind wound through the bare branches.

_Losing cover, and gaining sunlight._

Her eyes rose into the sky, welcoming the sight of deep, light blue emptiness beyond.

_Not a cloud after yesterday's rainstorm. Maybe it'll warm up some more._

Withdrawing the bottle of water, she downed two gulps, snapping the lid shut and stowing it.

_Everything's still holding together... Including me, I guess._

Trudging forward, her head remained on a swivel of observance as she wandered into the open expanse of a a grassy hill, dotted with patches of wildflowers and stones, with several new ridges of rock jutting from the hill further up the slope.

_We must be getting pretty far up by now... How tall is this damn mountain?_

Walking towards one of the ridges, catching her eye from what appeared to be another shallow cave in the distance, a resumption of gentle wind swirled, blowing tufts of grasses left and right and flicking her hair around. Reaching down and plucking one of the flowers with momentary curiosity, inspecting simple white and purple petals, she tucked the stem into the zipper handle of her jacket.

_You're coming with me._

Nearing the ridge, the overhanging outcropping came into clear detail, revealing the absence of an actual cave.

_Huh. Just a shadow._

With reluctance, she poked underneath, discovering the overhang wasn't very high either. Lowering to a squat, and then seating herself beneath, her hands settled to rest on her lap, fingers weaved together. Before her, the arena spread out below in a broad expanse, covered with a sea of turning and dying trees.

_Not only is this place wide open, its tall too... And with the weather, and the animals... Almost seems like a real piece of land._

She furrowed her eyebrows.

_That would explain a lot, actually. I don't know how else..._

Quiet footsteps filled her ears, and her eyes grew wide as they drew to a stop, followed by an exhale of breath. Something was unsheathed, and Alyssa lurched back against the rock wall, but the shuffle of her backpack was clearly audible, no doubt for the reason for the following silence.

_...Crap. Shit. Uh..._

Her eyes darted back and forth along the edge of the rock, breath slow and muted as hesitant footsteps were produced, and then vanished once more. Her hands slowly began to pull the axe out of the rope loop, only to stop when she was startled by an apprehensive voice.

"...Hello?"

Her eyebrows furrowed, and she kept hold of the weapon as the spoken word hung in the mountain air. Taking delicate steps forward, fully aware of the potential danger, she moved out and peered upward, only for her mouth to simply open as her eyes discovered the source of the voice, staring down at her above the overhang.

"Oliver?"

The blonde male blinked in immediate disbelief.

"Alyssa?"

Sinking to his knees, in contrast to her rising to her feet, both teens inspected the other with a rush of newfound relief.

"Hey."

"You're alive."

"Seems like it."

"Was never too sure every time I woke up."

"Well I haven't shown up on the nightly death broadcast, have I?"

"I'm... I could have slept through it, you never know."

Met with his unexpected amusement, she stood firm as he glanced aside in both directions.

"Well, anyways... Glad to find my ally again."

Exhaling from his nonthreatening demeanor, she cautiously stepped aside, finding a low spot on the ridge of rock. With several breaths of effort and a shuffle of clothing and boots, her heart beat with uncertainty as she scaled the outcropping, rising up to his level and eying him as she approached with visible hesitance.

_Ally. Right._

Inspecting the mildly-fatigued state of his appearance, she slowed to a halt, and Oliver simply sank onto his bottom, propping his arms back behind himself.

"Not going to hurt you, in case you were wondering."

Humming in response, she sank down and crossed her legs, and the settling clatter of her axe attracted his curiosity.

"Never hurts to be cautious."

"True, and I respect that you are being that way."

After a long pause of looking out at the arena beyond, and then at each other, Alyssa pointed into the distance.

"Where were you at the cornucopia... When the games began?"

"Facing the mouth. Where were you?"

"Looking at the tail." She breathed, eyes sinking.

"That explains why I didn't see you at all... Did you run?"

"Of course I ran... I got this axe, got my backpack, and then got away."

"I blasted off the pedestal... Got myself this thing, and barely avoided being chopped open doing so."

Withdrawing a previously unseen machete, made of the same polished black steel as her axe, Oliver glanced towards her, seeing her stare at the weapon with visible concern he sheathed it again.

_More than one of those around..._

"What's wrong?"

"...Just reminded me of the boy the other day."

His eyebrow rose, and she sighed.

"Which District?"

"I don't know... Never did find out."

Her eyes wandered back up to Oliver's, and he watched her eyebrows furrow with disgust.

"...I killed him. With this stupid axe. He followed me, and was about to stab me, so I swung this thing into him."

Lifting the bladed head of the axe from its resting place, she then dropped it back onto the rock with disapproval.

"It was bloody. Awful. And now I'm forever responsible for killing the twelfth tribute this year."

"That was you?"

Her eyes shut in a confirming grimace.

"Yes."

Allowing another moment of silence to drift away with the breeze, Oliver reached back and unslung his backpack, causing Alyssa to follow suit in seconds as they both set the packs in front of themselves. Silently gesturing at the knotted straps on her pack with a smile, the mirth vanished as soon as she pulled the knot apart, with the gash from a prior blade became glaringly apparent.

"Jeez... Your back wasn't sliced up, was it?"

"My side got a little cut. It's fine now, but she got close to doing a lot worse."

In response, he lifted his left arm and turned it over, watching as his index finger traced a healing cut along the length of his forearm.

"This one could have been a lot worse too."

Unzipping her backpack and pulling out the sleeping bag in a series of forceful yanks, she unraveled the padded roll, revealing the large tear in it.

"This didn't fare so well."

Oliver took it out of her hands, and looked it over.

"Well, be glad you even have one."

"You don't?"

"Nope."

Taking out the plastic container and water bottle and tossing the backpack aside, she pried the lid open, looking over as he unwrapped two short loaves of bread, a canteen of water, a slingshot, and a small bottle of ointment.

"Got some other things."

"Kind of."

She plucked the slice of meat out of the opaque container and took a sizable bite out of it, before handing the remaining half to Oliver, who readily accepted it and bit into it himself.

"Thanks."

"Figured I'd share."

Taking out a tube of peroxide and setting beside her water bottle, she pulled out and looked over the black rock within.

"I don't really know why I ended up with this though."

"Don't you know what that is?"

Her attention rose, expression flattening.

"...It's a rock."

He pulled it out of her hand, eying it in his own palm.

"It's flint."

She stared at him as he rolled the object in his fingers.

"What's so special about it?"

Oliver grinned, picking up her axe.

"It can do this."

Holding the flint up besides one of the blades of her axe, he struck it with a quick jerk forward, and a brief shower of sparks spewed from where the rock struck the steel. Her lips remained parted as he handed the stone back to her, plopping it into her slowly opening palm.

"You haven't even made a fire, have you?"

She shook her head, daintily setting the flint stone into the container again as he stuffed everything of his back inside the backpack. As an afterthought, he cut a quick slice from one of the loaves of bread, and handed it to her before packing the rest away.

"Since you gave me something."

Taking and biting into it, her back arched with an inhale of the starchy scent, and he quickly shoved everything of her own inside her backpack.

"We've been staying put for a little too long... And there's something I think you should see further up this mountain."

Clamping the bread crust in her teeth, she quickly re-tied the strap knot and stood, slipping the backpack over her shoulders and tucking the axe securely into the rope belt.

"That's pretty clever."

Smiling from his wayward compliment, she chewed and swallowed the remainder of the bread.

"Thanks. I stole the rope this morning."

His eyebrow rose with interest.

 _Stole, huh?_ "Then you did well. Let's get moving."

Alyssa looked to Oliver's face on occasion as both of them hiked together, but his eyes kept to the terrain in front of him as they wandered around the mountain in an upward spiral. Wordlessly scaling two ridges of rock, and an unnervingly steep and unstable pile of loose landslide debris later, Oliver held his arm out, and both of them slowed to a pause.

Then, a distant exchange of voices among the whispers of wind caused him to sigh.

"I was afraid of that."

"Of what?"

He turned to Alyssa, chin rising.

"You'll see."

Stepping forward towards a sizable boulder, Oliver crouched down onto the grassy slope. Gesturing ahead with a low point of his finger, she peeked around the rock with him, and then simply stopped. Before her, in the distance, a forlorn building stood, built into the mountainside. With fading grey-blue paint and discolored spots of rust and decay beneath a tiled and low-peaked roof, a narrow covered bridge stretched outward to a pile of golden earth and material in the distance, and a spindly cable-stayed smokestack sat on the roof with a leaning perch.

_Oh, that's a mine._

Noticing motion below the covered bridge, her eyes then discovered a group of healthy-bodied people sitting beside a tent, surrounded by small stacks of supply bins.

_Careers._

At the same moment of realization, Oliver tugged her down by her elbow, and she settled onto the hillside next to him.

"I saw this building. Right when the bloodbath was about to begin. Standing on the pedestal."

"So did I." Oliver spoke in a hushed voice. "I was the first to get up here, but I had a feeling the place would be occupied after a day or so... Turns out I was right."

Alyssa carefully peeked around the boulder once more.

"Have you been inside?"

"Not yet."

She looked at him, and a small smile crept onto his face.

"There's no way we're passing up shelter like that though."

Alyssa sunk behind the boulder, and then turned and sat onto a clump of grass.

"How do you suggest we get in there without being killed?"

His eyebrow rose as he dug out his own canteen of water, and took a sip before passing it to her.

"We sneak our way in."

* * *

_Run. Stop. Run again. Moving swiftly, and... Waiting silently._

Alyssa crouched next to Oliver, both of them keeping a wary eye on on the ridge above. The tailings pile from the mine, yellow in color and distinctively smelly from the presence of sulfur, was just a few bounds up the mountain.

In the blink of an eye, Oliver sped into motion again, and Alyssa dashed along behind, trying to keep her footfall safe rather than silent like the blonde. He screeched to a halt and crouched low under a thin bush, and Alyssa stopped just below him, and within seconds, he was moving again, and she struggled for purchase on the soil below before catching up behind.

Another pause later, and she grabbed his backpack, but before she could speak, he touched his index finger to his mouth, and both hunkered down in silence as nearby footsteps trailed slowly away and somebody spoke.

"Never mind... Thought I heard something over here."

Oliver slowly turned to her, and her eyes flicked around until he withdrew his hand when the footsteps faded to nothing. An exchange of looks later, and she sighed, resigning to silence as he got ready to run again.

_Fine._

Bursting into action, both of them hustled and stormed up the mountainside, and Alyssa looked over her shoulder as a majority of the mine sank from view. Out of sight of the tributes below, they slowed to a halt, and Oliver turned towards the mine, scrutinizing the land as it sloped down to the structure.

"There's a second story... On the main part of the building... We'll get in there at some point, but it needs to be darker."

Alyssa, catching her breath, stepped closer as he whispered with labored breath.

"And in the meantime, we're going to wait and not run around everywhere."

Oliver eyed her with a squint, and then his eyes wandered back down the hillside.

"Alright."

* * *

With the smokestack rising in plain sight in front of both of them, both of District Three's tributes settled in a small depression in the hillside. Setting their backpacks and weapons aside, both of them leaned back against the slope behind. Distractedly watching the moon rise in the distance, creeping closer to the vertical tube, she breathed a deep sigh as her eyes lifted into the fading sky above.

_Already evening... Today sure went by fast._

"Okay."

Glancing aside as Oliver pushed himself forward into a kneel, she sat up.

"Should be getting dark very shortly... You ready to move?"

Pulling her backpack on wordlessly in answer, he grunted as both of them shuffled upright, beginning a hushed wander down towards the mine, under the shadow of the smokestack towering above.

_Well I can see the light of their fire... Are you sure we should be next door neighbors?_

Breath held silent as they approached the building, boots winding among clumps of grass, heartbeats filled their ears among the steady crackles of flame.

_I guess if all they hear is their fire going, and all they see is bright flame, uhh..._

Shuffling unnervingly along a small path leading to the second story of the structure, with the campfire and several tributes seated around it, all clearly visible beneath the covered bridge, Oliver ducked lower, prompting an increasingly paranoid Alyssa to do the same as they tiptoed along a narrow iron catwalk. Toes curling within her boots from their combined footfall, her eyes nervously pulled towards the source of illumination and smoke, only to whirl into a void of darkness as Oliver vanished inside the door-less entrance.

_Ah, okay, hopefully there's nobody in here...!_

Greeted with a solid bare floor, and as her eyes readjusted, three dark walls and one squat window, she lurched aside from the doorway, seating herself within the dim room and looking in all directions. Glancing over with a start as Oliver set his backpack down, Alyssa remained still as he ran his hands along the interior wall behind himself.

"Sheet metal."

Looking over her shoulder after his whisper, only to be met with the swiftly-blackening sky beyond, she slipped the backpack free of her shoulders. After a momentary search with her fingers, she pulled free the canteen of water and set it onto the floor, and then yanked out the wadded sleeping bag, allowing it to unfurl in front of herself. Nudging it aside, against the wall to her right, she then sat herself atop the layer of cloth, crossing her legs in a new position. After a moment of watching Oliver's silhouetted arms fumble with his backpack's contents, he then produced one of the prior loaves of bread.

_Mm. Guess it would be about that time..._

Closing her eyes, listening to now-unseen motions a short distance away, her back and head slowly reclined against the corrugated wall, only for a shuffle of clothing to approach, immediately opening her eyelids again. Greeted by his outstretched arm, and much closer face, she then looked down as he dropped a apple and a slice of bread onto her lap.

"For you."

Fishing for the newly given food, she tucked the bread against her nose, allowing an unseen smile to arise as she bit into it.

"Thanks." She croaked.

"Welcome."

Gripping the apple with her free hand, her forearm lowered to rest on her knee once more, and her chin sank as she chewed.

_Any other day, or month, or year... I'd be thinking about a bed by now._

Exhaling heavily, her fingertips inspected the padded undulations of the bedroll beneath, and her remaining energy seemed to suddenly seep out with her breath.

 _Uh, well..._ "I might close my eyes, if that's alright."

"Go ahead."

Blinking from Oliver's lack of hesitation, she set the apple aside, pulling the bag open.

"D-Don't be afraid to wake me up if anything happens."

"Okay."

Heart beating from his simple answer, and his lack of movement, she pried her boots off and began a swift motion to crawl into the bag, breath deepening from the semblance of comfort.

_I don't think he has a bedroll... Does he? Maybe we'll share mine. Keep watch and sleep, for however long..._

Eyelids closing, burying her head beneath the flap and curling up inside, she lay still, mind working.

_Can I trust Oliver? Maybe. So far he's found us shelter and given me some bread... Can't say there's bad intent there. He was glad to find me all of a sudden... And we're doing the team thing. I guess we'll see how things are when my eyes pop open again. I don't like that we're so close to those other tributes, but as long as we stay quiet up here, I don't think anybody will know better. I just hope nobody saw us get in here... Had it been mid-day, we would have been seen and hunted immediately. Guess that's why we waited so long on that hill... Being out there in the open wasn't great, but nobody wandered our way besides a couple bugs._

Warm breath wandered from her nostrils, only to turn into a jaw-stretching, muted yawn.

_I mean, none of this has been great. I've had my life threatened at least twice, no, three times. I'm sure he's probably been through the same. I don't think either of us like the idea of going at this alone... So I'll trust him for now. See where it gets us tomorrow. Then I'll decide... Decide if... Mmmmm._

* * *

**District Three.**

Thousands of people stood in the square and stretched into streets and buildings surrounding the Justice Building. The stone structure, faded from many years of smoke drifting from the industrial depths of the city, stood silently, overlooking the open courtyard. Cloth banners, much brighter than the cut stone they were hung from, proudly displayed the gold Capitol seal against dark crimson. A blanket of silence remained over the area, reaching far and wide across the factories and tenements of the District, broken only by the occasional squawk of birds perched on eaves, gutters and power lines.

Positioned in the middle of the wide open square, children of several teen ages stood segregated into groups, and up on the balcony of the building, a small gathering of district officials and government members sat as hundreds of peacekeepers and many cameras scattered around the zone kept a watchful eye over the gathering, known officially as the Reaping. Among the rows of youth, pressed in with the older teenage females, a young red haired woman, eighteen years old, watched with a glaze of disinterest as a broad screen in the distance played the same propaganda film used every year at every reaping.

_The same message being beaten upon our weary populace for the fifty seventh year in a row, and only three victors left in recent memory to show for it..._

Rolling her eyes as the district representative resumed speaking after the film's ominous conclusion, her boot turned, audibly dragging on the paved stone beneath.

_Part of the problem with Three's pathetic performance in the Games, is that almost everybody is poor and starving here. The few victors in the past were either lucky or quite resourceful. The rest... Were just like the rest of us. Technologically inclined, but weak, hungry city people that couldn't last a week outside of civilization... Much less in an arena with a group of deadly teens from the rest of Panem. Kids coming from District Three's urban environment are pretty much worthless, and yet..._

Her eyes rose back up to the balcony, just in time to see the woman in the distance vigorously dig her hand through one of the glass balls.

_...Another animal being picked for the slaughter._

She stepped back up to the microphone, and a gathering of birds took flight from a rooftop among the silence as her hands pried open a tiny slip of paper.

"Alyssa Rosseau."

Her head flicked up as the name - Her name - echoed through the air, and she stared at the woman in the distance as her mouth slowly opened.

_Oh._

With a deep intake of horror-laden breath, heart hammering behind her bosom, she began to step forward, staring emptily as a path slowly started parting those standing before her.

_Ohh my. This is..._

Whispers arose in numerous directions, and a low murmur of discussion hummed across the area as she proceeded into a solemn march.

_This is happening... That was me. My name. My name..._

Approaching the stone steps, looking up as the woman motioned for her to hurry, her boots rose and planted themselves on each step, growing heavier with each rise. Several deafening heartbeats later, Alyssa stopped on the deck, and turned to the mass of people before her, visibly distraught as her eyes wandered over thousands of faces.

_I'm working daily to keep myself alive... And this is what I get._

Her head sank to the railing lining the platform, and her body trembled as a male name was spoken, echoing across the courtyard.

_Not a single volunteer. Who am I kidding... Who even does that?_

Her eyes flitted aside as a blurry profile of a blonde young man walked up next to her, only to return to the crowds beyond.

_Well... Goodbye, District Three._


	10. Chapter 10

Alyssa's eyes opened to blackness, and for an uncertain period, she lay still. Turning her head, her nose pressed against something, and with an inhale of breath, she looked up and groaned, immediately met with the fabric of her sleeping bag. Reaching up and prying her way out of the padded flap, her hand and arm were immediately met with cool air, and upon slipping her head out beyond the roll, she spotted Oliver, sitting still in the dim light near the room's open doorway.

"Hey."

Blinking from his low mumbled greeting, her arm drug out along the cold concrete floor, fingertips touching her backpack.

"Sleep at all?"

"Mmmm. Did." She murmured, shifting and stretching, and waiting as an ache in her back faded.

"Did you?"

"A little."

_You slept sitting there...? That would mean..._

"Anyway, its morning."

Shuffling upright, only to realize that the axe remained strapped to her side, she groggily fumbled with the weapon, freeing its weight from her waist and setting it aside.

_I slept with this on? What..._

Taking another look at the room's plain and vacant interior, spotting a previously unseen desk tucked into the corner of the room, she then blinked, fingers massaging her eyes.

"Mm, what's the plan for today?"

"Staying inside."

"Why's that?"

"Take a look outside."

Realizing after his whisper that he was seated within the layers of a coat, she crawled over, dragging the bag with her legs. Just beyond the open doorway, a flurry of falling snow ensued, and a wisp of visible breath left her mouth.

 _This_... "Ugh."

"Yeah."

"So we're just staying put?"

"For now. A fire would be nice, but there's nothing in that desk to start it with. Wouldn't be a great idea with our neighbors either."

Releasing a huff, and then pushing herself up, tugging the zipper open further, the presence of her full bladder became apparent, and she stared at the inclement weather.

"Is anyone outside?"

"Haven't seen or heard any movement. Probably all in that tent."

"So they might all be asleep."

"Might be."

"Hopefully they are, because I need to piss."

Fighting her way out of the rest of the bag, and swiftly wrestling her boots back on, Alyssa glanced at Oliver, noticing his silent amusement.

"What?"

"Do it through the railing. Towards the building."

At first grimacing from his suggestion, she rose to her feet, leaning outside into the snowfall.

_Ah. I see._

* * *

With nature hurriedly relieved, tiptoeing back into the shelter, Alyssa brushed a gathering of snowflakes from her shoulders, and swiftly retrieved her own jacket, pulling it on and zipping it together.

_Snowing... What the hell. Isn't it the middle of the year?_

Seating herself back onto the bedroll, she pulled her backpack closer, retrieving a simple breakfast of an apple as warmth was regained inside her coat.

"They were cooking something last night on the fire. Smelled it."

"Hmm."

"That said... I've got a plan."

"Yeah?"

"Its stupidly dangerous."

Her chewing slowed for a moment. _Everything about our situation is stupidly... Dangerous._

"We should distract the tributes down there, and steal some of it. Just enough where its not really noticed."

Her mind worked as she swallowed.

"How do you suggest we distract them?"

A grin spread on his face.

"As it happens, I have a tool for that."

"Really."

"Slingshot."

"Oh." _That's a development._

"We'll launch a couple of things around. Might make it sound like somebody is nearby... In the wrong direction."

"How soon?"

"Nightfall. Might still be snowing then."

Sinking her teeth into the apple once more, she tore a fresh bite away when an explosion pierced the air outside.

Startled, both of them sat still from the echo of the concussion, and voices arose from far away, but no further blasts followed.

"Somebody died."

"We'll find out who tonight."

* * *

Tucked against the front corner of the cold little room, out of sight of the doorway and surrounded by the breadth of the sleeping bag that was now sufficing as a blanket, Alyssa's axe sat across her legs as she watched Oliver's fingers carefully manipulate the machete in his possession.

_Glad I thought of this... Not liking how cold its getting. He sat there all night too, so... I can share._

Watching as he looked down along the blade's edge, glancing out toward the falling snow beyond, Alyssa's idle hand then appeared nearby, and he turned it around, setting the hilt into her opening palm.

"How did you get this thing?"

He reached down and daintily lifted the axe from her lap.

"...Before I answer, I'd like to ask how you ended up with this."

Exhaling, as imagery of a panicked fight and escape rippled across her mind, her lips parted.

"Right at the start, I passed the cornucopia... Saw the district seven boy running with it, towards a pair of backpacks I was going after too. So I ran into him, both of us fell, and he dropped it. Tried to get it back but I jumped onto it. Hit him in the face, broke his nose I think."

Oliver moved the axe left and right in an arc, before giving a nod.

"Kicked him too, and finally got his hands off it. Ran and almost fell grabbing my bag, and then kept running. Ran for my life."

The blonde grunted, setting it back onto her lap.

_Some other things happened... And hopefully that one psycho girl was the one that just bought it a little while ago._

Her eyes rose up to his, and he watched her thumb press onto the serrated edge along the tang of the machete.

"How about you, and this?"

"Mm. I was one of the first to the big gold horn, and almost lost my arm grabbing this."

Turning his left arm over and pulling back the sleeves, healing tissue of a lengthy cut appeared in the dim light along his forearm.

"I think if this was any deeper, I might not have been too lucky."

Her index finger ran along the wound up to his wrist, and then her hand dropped the machete back onto his palm.

"So after getting sliced, I found my bag and my feet, and continued to run. Right up the hillside. Didn't stop until I was probably halfway up this mountain."

The machete slid contently back into its sheath, and their hands lowered to rest on their laps, only for Alyssa to push hers beneath the bedroll.

_Running scared. About all us factory folks can do..._

"A day later, I found this building, and stayed put under the bridge when it started raining like crazy."

"I remember that."

"Did you stay dry?"

"Found a cave."

"Nice. Once the rain ended, I started hiking around the mountain for another shelter because our career friends found this place too, and about midday, I heard, and then found you at that overlook."

"Mm."

Hearing a weary breath exit his lungs, she glanced over as he closed his eyes.

"Mind if I rest?"

"Go ahead. I'll be here."

"Okay."

Eying his features as he sat still, gentle breath passing through his nose, Alyssa then looked beyond at the desk in the corner, and her head slumped back against the wall.

_I guess for now... We're just going to hide up here. Until something happens, or... I don't know. Would be great if nothing happened._

Vision flitting over towards the open doorway, with snowflakes still steadily falling to the ground beyond, a restrained sigh emptied her lungs.

_Nothing besides this winter weather... In the middle of the year._

* * *

"Huh?!"

Jerking awake with a shiver, Alyssa's wide eyes scanned her dark surroundings for an immediate threat, only to find Oliver still seated beside her, silently eying her flight of newly-awakened paranoia.

"You must be awfully tired."

Blinking from his humored, low voiced remark, she took in a cold breath.

"I'm... Long sleeps are few and... Far between back home."

"I get that."

"Did you sleep?"

"Already done. You were out when I woke up."

Looking up at the black ceiling with concern, she shook her head.

"If both of us are asleep when something happens... That's the end."

"I know. It'll be less of a problem with our neighbors out of the picture."

Eyes lowering, her chin sank into a nod.

"Yeah."

"Speaking of those guys... They started another fire earlier."

"Cooking?"

"Food and warmth... Honestly I'm about done with letting them have both."

Watching Oliver rise to his feet, stepping forward and peeking out of the doorway, Alyssa cautiously rose to her feet as well, slinking around him and joining his gaze through the doorway. Met with a dusting of frost and sparse flurries wandering and greeting her nose, her lungs took in the cold air, tinted with the scent of charred wood.

_Oof. Chilly._

Seeing a layer of fallen snow illuminated by the orange flickering of open flame, shadows of bodies, a tent, and several containers and crates danced, and a flattened mass of footsteps were slowly discerned in the snow all over the campsite.

_Well, I was concerned about someone noticing our footprints... Seems there's already plenty._

Looking at his red-haired compatriot confidently, offering a nod and pulling the hood of her jacket over her head, Oliver turned back into the squat room, prying open his backpack.

_I think its time we steal some dinner._

Rearmed with their weapons and Oliver's slingshot, the pair crept along the frost-coated catwalk, bursting into a run into the darkness once their boots found the hillside again. With daylight all but gone, and the moon's glow hidden behind a layer of cloud cover, they stopped and huddled low to the ground, watching the flickering of the fire in the distance under the cover of a wintry night. Oliver then began to scrounge around on the ground, sifting through snow to find the occasional rock, and Alyssa joined the effort as he put one onto the pouch of the slingshot, finding several more as he lifted his arm into the air, finding the right angle.

With a muffled snap, the rock disappeared into the darkness, and breath remained held for any additional sounds. Met with silence, Alyssa handed him another rock, and he aimed at the campfire in the distance, before aiming high again.

***snap***

This time, after a few seconds, a solid surface in the distance was struck, producing a distinctively loud crack. Heads visibly turned at the campsite, and Oliver grinned, handing the slingshot to Alyssa with a chilled exhale of excitement.

_My turn?_

Placing a newfound rock in the pouch and aiming high in the air, she let the projectile fly after a strong tug, and both of them sunk down and sat still as a distant tree branch broke, and numerous bits of it fell through additional branches on its descent to earth.

"What the hell..."

One tribute stood up in the distance, looking towards the sound.

"I told you somebody's out there!"

Blinking, and then restraining a laugh from the spoken frustration, Alyssa handed the slingshot back to Oliver.

_One more._

As Oliver loaded the slingshot, Alyssa gripped a sizable rock and stepped forward. Chucking the second rock to the left in sequence as he launched the stone, the thrown rock bounced loudly off another stone, and the second tumbled into a pile of wet leaves somewhere.

"That's IT! You're DEAD!"

The first tribute lurched upward with a previously unseen sword and ran from the campfire, followed by a girl with another, and the third tribute at the fire, holding a bow, slowly followed.

Looking back and forth at the nearly-vacated scene, and each other in slight disbelief, both Oliver and Alyssa began an approach to the campsite, spreading apart into a hunched hustle as wisps of snow wandered along occasional gusts of wind. Seeing Oliver suddenly stop, Alyssa dropped to all fours as the third tribute with a bow paused, and looked around with apprehension. Seemingly noticing nothing different, he continued forward, and sped up his walking pace as one of the tributes in the distance shouted repeatedly, crashing through snow-laden foliage.

_Okay._

Springing back into action with several stealthy bounds, both of them closed the distance to the campsite's tent, and with a creep around each side of it, began identifying several plastic containers and small crates, taking in the warmth of the fire.

_Did they seriously haul all of this up here?_

Initially overwhelmed by the amount of supplies, both of them quickly poked around, lifting lids and perusing through contents, and one by one, small items were pocketed, and another bag of apples was grabbed. Suddenly, a blast of cannon ripped through the chilly air, and Alyssa's hand instantly retracted from investigation.

"Got anything good?" Oliver warned.

"Yeah."

"Let's get out of here."

Turning back and darting away from the campfire, beating a hasty retreat into the darkness, several sources of footfall kicked through grass and snow, and within moments, all three of the other tributes began to reappear one by one back at the campsite.

"...Almost felt sorry for that moron. Who's that loud when they walk anyway?"

"A fish out of water."

"Heh... District Four. Try again next year!"

Ducking inside the dark shelter of the little room again, both Oliver and Alyssa traded an unsettled glance as they quietly retreated to one side, placing their spoils onto the bare floor.

_Somebody from District Four was actually out there... And is now dead. Might have been that one boy I encountered yesterday._

Lowering the netted bundle of apples next to her backpack, both of them fumbled with their various pants pockets, emptying them of the remaining spoils of wrapped cheese, crackers, and some sort of dried beef.

"Not bad."

Nodding from his whisper, Alyssa turned around and pulled the sleeping bag closer as Oliver fished out a flask of water.

_Seems we stole ourselves dinner._


	11. Chapter 11

One by one, eyes opened to the dim channel of light from an early rising sun, and after several blinks, Alyssa rubbed her fingers into her eyelids, and then ran them up into her hair. Frowning from the oily feeling gracing her fingers, a nearby hand beside her moved slightly, and she looked over, greeted by the calm, tired face of Oliver.

"Stopped snowing."

She shifted, breathing in the cool air as her legs stretched outward with a wiggle.

"Sounds windy."

"It is."

Sitting still, listening to the newly arising swirls of noise through the air, she reached up and touched her cold ear in several places as errant breezes wandered inside the little room on occasion.

"You still have that flint rock, right?"

"I do."

"Good... We'll have a fire sometime soon."

"Up here?"

"Not sure... And not right now."

"Our neighbors below get to enjoy it."

Oliver's mouth moved in response, and he leaned aside.

"I think our neighbors below might get robbed again."

Her eyes shut, and a flicker of excitement bloomed inside.

"They don't need so much stuff anyway."

"That's what I was thinking."

With a glance out through the doorway, she watched silhouettes of nearby trees lazily sway back and forth from the ongoing wind.

_One big waiting game. Everybody's waiting for something to happen... I wonder what the gamemakers think of us just sitting here quietly..._

The blonde stirred into motion, and her eyes flitted over as he rose to his feet.

"Going to look at the bridge. You should too."

"What about it?"

"Our neighbors are hiding right below it. They wouldn't see either of us up on it."

"Might hear us though."

Looking back over his shoulder, leaning against the empty door frame, his head tilted in consideration.

"Good thing all this wind is pretty noisy."

Rising to her feet and twisting into a groaning stretch, she followed him outside onto the steel catwalk, immediately greeted with moving airflow tossing her hair about, prompting a squint as campfire smoke swirled into their faces. Stepping up beside the blonde male and sinking to a matching kneel, both of them looked through the wide gaps in the tubular steel railing, eying the length of the covered bridge and its shallow peaked roof.

"Not steep."

The blonde scanned the visible structure beneath them, looking for points of accessibility from below.

"Good. Got that rope?"

Meeting his eyes with a turn, she eyed him with an apprehensive nod.

"You planning on climbing down?"

"Not quite."

Alyssa blinked as Oliver stepped back into the dim room and retrieved the coil of rope on the floor.

"I'll go down there on foot."

"Was going to say... There's no way I can lower you down like that."

He then presented her with his backpack, fastening a quick knot to the top straps after plopping it onto her knee.

"Who says you have to lower me?"

Lips parting as he slinked away along the catwalk, shuffling along in a crouch, Alyssa then looked aside to the roofed bridge, eyes flitting back and forth from the shrinking blonde and the little-discussed plan that seemed to already be in motion.

_Uh, should I get my axe...?_

Shuffling down low and ducking between the railings, she clutched the cold steel bars, lowering herself onto the tattered tar paper paneling of the structure just beneath. Breath held as her feet found purchase on the angled structure, she pulled the backpack through and hunkered down, heartbeat steadily increasing as she awkwardly turned around. Taking in the scent of the crackling wood beneath, she looped the bundle of rope around her elbow, keeping her head low with a forward creep on all fours.

_To think there's people right below me... Sure hope nobody feels like moving... And where the heck is Oliver going?_

Sidling out onto the top of the covered bridge, errant swirls of wind taunted her with eerie moans, sending occasional blowing gusts that made her leery of her balance as she approached the middle.

_Sure would be stupid to fall off. Land right next to the camp like an idiot. Immediate death._

Peering over the edge and rediscovering the supplies below, with empty containers scattered and tossed asunder among dozens of footprints, she clutched the edge of the roofing as the bridge groaned for a moment.

_Looks like maybe fifteen feet... How long is this rope again?_

A distant crunch of leaves and several heavy thuds in the distance caught her attention through the wind, and she kept an eye on the hillside in the distance. Below, the fire below popped as somebody put on another chunk of wood, sending a cloud of embers aloft. Then, the blur of a sizable rock sailed through the air in the distance, and her eyes followed its downhill travels, only to wander back up the hill and search for the unseen sender.

_Sure hope that's you up there._

More leaf crunching, snapping of twigs, and another thud ensued, and the shuffling movements of someone much closer began.

"Someone's there."

Alyssa's skin crawled from the voice just beneath.

"Shut up. You're hearing the wind."

"Oh yeah? How come last night we found that kid from Four wandering around?"

"Okay... But tha-."

***POW***

Alyssa flinched, retracting her hands and clutching dearly onto the central ridge as the sharp report of cannon fire ripped through the air. Five people, including her, were now looking at the sky.

***POW***

Another blast thundered through the air, and she kept her head on a wary swivel, heart hammering.

"I TOLD YOU! Somebody just killed two tributes out there!"

"Calm down, Tate. That could have happened on the opposite side!"

"No! I'm tired of being stalked by people. This kid's gonna die!"

"Alright, wait up! There could be more than one person... _You_. Stay put."

Watching as both a male and female tribute took off running towards the source of the sounds, storming into the distance down the hill and disappearing from sight, her mind suddenly clicked from their healthy physical appearances.

_Tatius and Aquila. District Two's tributes._

Peering over the other side of the roof, a third tribute stood, bow drawn, watching something in the distance. Looking opposite, she watched carefully as Oliver crept around the stone footings of the mine structure, approaching the camp with stealthy weaves around clumps of grass and patches of melting snow. Catching his attention, she held her finger to her lips and pointed down, and he confirmed with a nod. Following his progression as he tiptoed up to the camp, she slowly unraveled the rope and suspended the backpack below, readily unzipped and out of sight next to the bridge as the blonde crept up among the scattered containers, and delicately began to pry open lids.

With a lone fork being the only item of interest so far, he stuffed it inside one of his pants pockets. Opening another that seemed visibly fogged with heat, he blinked, finding a previously cooked chicken wrapped poorly inside foil, and in an instant, the lid was shut, and the container was in his hands. Turning aside, he suddenly found another human walking right into view, and separate intakes of startled breath ensued as his eyes met those of the third darker skinned male tribute.

Grip tightening on the container in his hands as the mysterious opponent fumbled with the ranged weapon in his grasp, Oliver stomped towards him with determination, sending the broad side of the bin right into the tribute's cheek. His head jerked to the side, and he sprawled flat onto the ground behind, and Oliver jumped over, tearing the bow free from his hands and whirling it away with a heave. Looking back, noticing his backpack dangling in the open air, he hustled over and hurriedly stuffed the container of chicken inside, and with a quick zipping, the backpack rose upward with several pulls to safety.

Turning back once more, spooked by the sight of the subdued tribute writhing and touching his struck face beyond the wind-swept flames of the campfire, Oliver stepped back over, gathering a pile of snow in his hands and dropping it directly onto the face of the tribute. In a burst of vengeful thinking, he then gripped and shoved the the remaining stack of supplies aside, toppling them over onto the tribute and and spilling the contents of several onto the snowy ground.

_That should keep you busy._

Spotting a bundled up sleeping mat, he plucked it from the ground at the last minute, and then turned and began to run, leaving the scene as fast as possible. Darting up the hillside, smiling with uncanny glee and bedding shoved beneath his shoulder, he stormed over to the end of the catwalk, slowing his footfall and speedwalking up the steel platform, slinking into the doorway of their dim room, and collapsing onto the floor, only to push aside from the doorway and press back against the corner of the room, looking across and spotting an also-hiding Alyssa, buried beneath her sleeping bag in the shadows.

Opening his mouth among pulls of exhilarated breath, he then remained silent, head turning slightly as voices arose in the distance, only to smile from a shout.

"What... The hell?"

"God DAMMIT. What happened here?!"

"Hey. _HEY!_ What happened?"

Hearing scuffles of clothing and the clatter of plastic being pushed and kicked aside, both Oliver and Alyssa's eyes were glued to the doorway, listening.

"Someone with blonde hair... He appeared out of nowhere and tried to take something. Hit me with, uh, one of these, and kicked snow onto my face."

"I knew somebody was stalking us. Which way did he go?"

"I didn't see. He knocked over everything onto me before leaving."

Hearing the bulkier male growl in anger, Oliver buried his mouth inside his jacket to suppress laughter.

"A blonde boy did all this?"

"Yeah."

"It's that kid from Three. Has to be."

"And we don't know where he is. We're NOT staying here anymore!"

"Then where do you plan to set up camp? We're already losing daylight."

"Anywhere but here! That tribute killed two people and now he's onto us! I swear if I find him, I'm gonna tear him into shreds!"

Trading a look of interest as a procession of gathering and packing began, largely hidden by the incessant wind, a distinct sound of stomping and kicking turned into the hiss of doused flames, as someone unseen put out the fire below. With a cloud of white smoke rising and being swept away, several agitated grumbles of voices issued commands, and within moments, a fleeting procession of footfall faded into the distance.

Moving onto his knees, and peeking around the doorway, Oliver crept along the cold steel plating, watching vigilantly as the trio of tributes marched into the distance hillside, seemingly shooed away by their actions. Leaning out beyond the bent railing, all that was left beneath the bridge was a haphazard pile of empty plastic containers, a smoldering pile of charred wood, and hundreds of footsteps in the snow.

_Go away, and stay away._

Slinking back into the squat little room, met with an also-curious Alyssa still bundled in her bedroll, her brow furrowed as he crept inside on all fours.

"...And just like that, our neighbors moved out."

"Good."

Handing him his backpack, noticeably heavier from the addition of its prior contents, Oliver sucked in a great breath of the cold air, putting it around his shoulders.

"I think its time we check out the rest of this place."

* * *

Breaking a rusted lock on the hasp of an old door, Alyssa pushed it open, flinching as one of the hinges snapped off in a clatter of defeat as it tumbled to the ground. Peering into the darkness, she waited as Oliver's footsteps stopped behind her, before cautiously stepping inside. Adjusting to the darkness, she stepped over, touching the opposite wall, and then looking to the right, eying the lengthy interior of the adjoining covered bridge, and then watching as Oliver set a plastic bin of the previously burnt wood onto the floor, and walked into the depths of a larger room.

"Wow."

Alyssa followed his voice for a moment, growing wary of the increasing darkness. The sound of a boot kicking metal filled the room, and Oliver huffed.

"Can't see anything in here... Let's get a fire going."

He walked back over, dragging the container of wood, and Alyssa sat down and fished out her flint rock in the darkness. Fumbling with her axe, she touched both together in confirmation, and then drug the stone across the blade.

_Nothing._

Another try, and several sparks flew for a split second.

"Come over here. I don't know what it'll take to light this again but... See if you can do something."

She shuffled towards his voice, and her knee found the pile of wood, just as he walked away.

"I'll be right back."

She sighed, stomach growling, and struck the axe blade with the rock, producing more sparks than before, and briefly illuminating the wood below.

_Better._

Two more attempts, and Oliver reappeared, shutting the old door behind him.

"Hang on... This might help."

He knelt down beside her, and stuffed a wad of dry grass and sticks under the charred cords of wood. After a pause, Alyssa struck the flint and steel together, and upon a second attempt, the ball of tinder bloomed into a flame. With a gasp of excitement, both of them moved down and gently blew on the flame, and against all uncertainty, the flame grew and began to lick at the sticks and charred wood lengths above it.

An inviting glow of light slowly began to illuminate the interior of the room, and both of them, faces lit by the growing flicker of light, eyed each other with little hints of smiles.

_Heat, and light. Been needing both._

Flames happily popped and crackled, working their way through previously burned wood. A vent in the roof above, and a steady draft through the bridge kept the room pleasantly free of smoke and fumes. With boots off and placed by the fire, the pair padded around the inside of the room, investigating everything except for the entrance of a rock tunnel, which was almost sealed off by a fall of debris a few feet inside. Just like the smaller room above, the interior was nearly empty, except for a conspicuous, rectangular steel container that sat in a corner.

Piquing their shared curiosity, the pair stepped over, and Oliver lifted a rusted lid from the top, discovering that it was filled to the brim with a fine sand. Sifting his fingers through the granular material, Alyssa stared down into the container.

"What is this?"

"Some kind of powder."

He cupped a handful.

"In a mine?"

Their eyes then met with a perk of alarm in the darkness.

"Don't tell me..."

"Blasting powder?"

"Sure hope not."

He dropped the pile back inside, plopping the lid back onto top.

"Better keep this on."

"Should probably move it away from our fire."

"Yeah."

Pushing and dragging the metal box into the dim entrance of the tunnel with combined heaves of effort, a jostling of rock began as boots met broken stone, and the blonde reached down and touched something unseen.

"I think I found some more firewood."

Peering over the container as he lifted a thick beam of wood aloft, she stepped around and got a hold of it as well. With several jerks, a wood timber was dislodged from the rock debris, and they dragged it out, setting it near the fire.

"Time for that axe."

Several grunts and swings of the weapon-turned-tool later, the old timber of wood split and splintered apart, and was cut further into smaller chunks. With a bundle of large and small lengths of wood now available, the fire was built up further, and quickly began to grow in size, as did the pair's morale. Staring down at the blade of the axe, watching as the etches from the flint rock glinted from the moving glow of the fire, a breath of interest passed through her nose.

_That explains the sparks._

Sitting cross-legged and holding her hands, she watched the blonde as he prodded the logs with a dark chunk of wood, before setting it on top of the pile. His eyes rose, meeting Alyssa's, and she lowered her head in a smile, basking in the much-welcomed heat of open flame. Just beside her, Oliver stuck the partially cooked chicken onto his machete, holding it over the fire. Moments later, both of them watched with patient interest as the chicken sizzled, cooking over the open flame.

_The prize of a riskier robbery... A nice crispy bird._

After several rotations, with the blade and his hand growing steadily hotter, he withdrew the chicken, visibly steaming. Holding it up in the air, and then lowering it in front of Alyssa, his free hand fumbled with a pocket, withdrawing the solitary stolen fork from an earlier escapade.

"Ladies first."

Pulling the offered utensil out of his grasp, and then picking at the lightly colored flanks of meat, she stuck the utensil's tangs in and tore a sizable chunk out of the chicken, taking a bite, and shutting her eyes among satisfied, vigorous chewing.

Oliver simply tore a bite out with his teeth, and smiled as Alyssa leaned closer, tearing free another forkful, and devouring it just as easily as he chewed.

_Completely worth it._

* * *

Alyssa twisted the shaft of her axe around in her hands, watching as each blade briefly reflected the afternoon light, forcing through the ajar doorway with each revolution. The fire beside her knee was now a pile of white ash, with mere embers left from several hours of burning. Oliver, sitting nearby, whittled an unburned stick with the machete, focusing deftly on the removal of a knot on the wood.

"Hey."

Slowly looking aside to her, he stared at her hands as she counted fingers.

"It's been... Six days, right?"

Doing a quick count in his head, marked by distinct events of terror and mayhem, he nodded.

"Yup."

"...Figured."

With a jerk, the last of the knot was cut off, and Oliver eyed the smooth surface, caressing it with his thumb before setting it aside. Then, beneath the morning silence, voices arose, echoing into the dim depths of the structure, and their eyes met warily. Attentions turning towards the old door in front of both of them as a familiar voice hollered something in the distance, Oliver sprung upward onto his feet, sheathing the machete and approaching the door. Eyes widening further as he peeked through the narrow gap in the entrance, he whirled around, eying a still-seated Alyssa.

"We've got company."

"You think they know we're here?"

Peering out of a small dusty window on the door, and seeing two now-familiar individuals running straight towards the mine along the side of the mountain, he slammed it shut and stormed over to her side.

"I would say yes!"

Hurriedly pulling her backpack on and grabbing the bundle of rope, standing and hastily attempting to fasten a knot around her waist, Oliver ripped the rope from her hands and shoved it into her bag beneath the flap.

"Hey!"

"No time for that!"

"Okay!"

"I hope you've got everything you need!"

"I do!"

"Good, 'cause we're leaving right now!"

Hunching down and plucking her axe from the floor as his arm thrust towards the length of the tunnel, both of them sped into panicked forward motion, running noisily through the covered bridge to its opposite end. Halting suddenly, peering out of the abrupt end of the structure to the right, one of the pursuing tributes disappeared from view a second afterward, and the door slammed open in the distance behind them. In a split-second decision, both of them sunk down and jumped off the end of the bridge, landing on the tailings pile below in a shuffle of yellowish powder and rock as they slid uncontrollably downhill, before finding purchase and regaining upright balance, breaking into a furious run down the hillside.

"There they are! Down there!"

The distant commanding voice of Tatius yelled at them from higher behind, and both of them accelerated into a downhill sprint as the snapping of fallen twigs and shuffles of loose soil and heavy footsteps ensued from behind, turning the mountainside into a blur of grey rocks, thickening trees, and patches of wild grass whipping through their vision.

"Where are we going?!"

Chests heaving with breath, keeping pace a short distance beside her, Oliver's arm waved out in front of himself from Alyssa's shout.

"Somewhere! Stay with me!"

Frowning, and then ducking under a cluster of low branches as they sped into the depths of white-trunked aspen trees, the thought of the only known structure being taken back furrowed her brow. Taking a sudden turn to the right, narrowly avoiding a stump, she began an evasive series of turns around trunk after endless white trunk as the footsteps behind seemed to grow faint.

 _Might, be, ah, losing someone. Damn. My legs won't be happy about this but at least its down-_ "Hill?!"

Gasping as a figure burst out of the trees to her right and dove at her, a newly appearing assailant collided into her ankles and knocked her feet right out from underneath her. Sprawling face-first into the leaves below, glimpsing her axe tumbling forward into the distance, she weakly pushed herself up onto her forearms, only for the tread of a boot to shove her back down into the ground, followed by the weight of a body above it. Drawing in a tight, winded breath, arms dragging through the loose ground cover and foliage, the unseen weight on her backside shifted, and in an instant, the backpack was torn free from her arms and tossed aside. Then, a hand grasped her hair and roughly shoved her face sideways onto the ground, palm pressed against her jaw.

A palm, she then realized, belonging to a horrifyingly familiar female tribute, who immediately smiled from the fearful recognition in her captive prey's eyes.

"Ohhh, you do remember me. _Good_."

Dropping down forcefully onto her knees, pinning Alyssa's shoulders beneath her bodily weight, the weathered and dark-eyed girl from District Seven, wounded shoulder and all, withdrew a large combat knife, holding it in front of her eyes.

"You know what I'm going to do now?" The girl's chapped lips spread further into a smirk. "I'm going to cut you open. So you can watch your life bleed right out of you."

Watching helplessly as the knife snaked around her head, blade tucking against the underside of her chin, her mouth opened as her throat repeatedly swallowed in choked desperation. Pressing tighter and tighter beneath her jaw, she winced, and a strained cry escaped her throat as the blade slowly moved over, riddling her jawbone with intense pain. A cascade of warm liquid trickled down along her throat, and the knife was held above her cheek, the sharpened edge of its dark blade tinted with blood.

"You see that?"

The knife tilted, and blood dribbled onto Alyssa's face, running down her cheek alongside uncontrolled tears flowing from her eyes. Staring at the girl, vision blurred by bodily liquids and unable to move, speak, or do anything to help herself, she lay still, chest shuddering with jerky pain-addled breath.

_I'm dead. This is torture. And I'm dead._

"And now, for your hands."

Folding back her left arm with a pincered clutch of her wrist, the young woman looked up from rapidly approaching crunches of footsteps, and in an instant, two legs collided with the attacker's shoulder, knocking her over sideways off Alyssa and sending the knife flying away as a male body tumbled onto her backside, blasting her legs and rear with blunt tumbling strikes of limbs.

_Ouch._

Eyes rolling from a surge of growing soreness, Alyssa groaned as the male body shoved himself upright and launched over her, descending upon her ambushing opponent with speed and determination. Realizing that her the hostile girl was being actively subdued, her arm fumbled upward and she wiped her eyes clear, discerning short and dirty blonde hair and a familiar slender stature.

_Oliver._

Glancing at her bloodied fingertips, and then beyond, Alyssa watched with morbid interest as he clutched the District Seven girl by her throat with both hands and drug her through the leaves, shoving her back against a fallen log and cutting off her air with a chokehold around her neck.

"I don't know where you came from... But if I find you again... If you ever attack her again..."

He unsheathed his machete, and set the point of the blade onto the tip of the girl's nose as her hands clutched his forearm in a struggle for breath.

"...I'll make sure you suffer."

He flicked a lock of her tangled hair up with the blade, and then slammed her head back against the trunk of the log, standing up and backpedaling as she drooped limply and flopped onto her side, gasping for breath in pain. Staring at the battered and weakened brunette, Oliver then turned around and stormed past Alyssa, retrieving her backpack and after a momentary search, the axe. Finally returning in a kneel beside his teammate and looking her over as she rolled over, he immediately eyed her throat with alarm.

"I'm alright." She croaked.

"Uh, if you insist, but, we need to stop that bleeding no matter what."

Offering both of his hands as she nodded, he heaved her upright onto her feet, releasing her digits and watching with a grimace as she held her hand flat beneath her chin. Lips parting to speak, only for her to exhale miserably, he stepped up beside her and collected her with his arm behind her back, beneath both of her shoulders.

"I'm sorry this happened to you so quickly... We've got to get out of here."

Nodding again in answer, his limb became firm as he took her weight, and they leaned forward into a hurried pace. Staring at the ground ahead without focus, focusing only on running and staunching the slow ooze of life from her chin, Alyssa's mind focused solely on the alarm bells in her head, emanating from her chin.

_Damn this stinging... Hurts._

The land ahead dropped into another gully, and with several shuffles of displaced dirt and gravel, they slid to a halt on the eroded bank of a small rock-strewn stream. Turning and tucking beneath the bare branches of a bush, growing from the rise of land just above, Oliver halted, and lowered Alyssa to the dirt beneath, releasing her onto the ground. Sitting back against the sloped soil, she wordlessly watched Oliver's hurried motions as he unzipped his backpack, pulling out a pair of socks and drenching one in the flowing water. Squeezing the excess out, he then leaned over her, brushing it against her neck as her fingers lifted away.

"You have that tube of peroxide still?"

Met with another silent nod, he rinsed the sock into the stream, continuing further around her throat and up beneath her chin, and then bringing her hand up to hold it over the wound as he dug through her backpack. Finding the vial of peroxide in short order, he twisted the lid off and poured a good deal onto the dry sock, closing the vial again, and then trading the new sock for the wet, bloody one.

"It's going to hurt... Be ready for it."

She shut her eyes, and pressed the sock up onto the cut underneath her jaw, teeth baring in a snarl of discomfort as it stung with intense pain.

Tossing the soiled sock aside, and then rinsing his reddened hands in the stream, Oliver sighed, looking at his miserable compatriot.

"You're gonna be fine n-."

***POW***

Both of them flinched from the blast of a cannon, and in the following silence among the foliage, the blonde blew a breath from his mouth as Alyssa looked upward, leaning her head to the side.

"Goodbye, Seven girl."

_Guess someone else... Got to see your life bleed out of you._

* * *

Oliver stared ahead as he and Alyssa trekked through the hilly expanse of wintry forest, with the setting sun retracting what little color seemed to remain on the foliage.

_Already losing daylight..._

Alyssa, remaining speechless to let her chin heal, walked around the end of a fallen log, discovering a massive pile of leaves around her feet before encountering a second fallen tree laying diagonally upon the first.

_...I hate how noisy this stuff is. Easier to sneak around on... Concrete and brick... Not that it matters now._

Trudging up along the fallen log, with rotting bark crumbling beneath the tread of her boots, she plunked back down onto the earth with a resounding crunch of leaves and dry grass. Glancing aside to Oliver, matching his pace to hers to avoid getting separated again, his vision remained forward, and she inspected the traces of grime darkening his features, beneath tired eyes shrouded under oily and disheveled hair.

_This is what we become... After all that prettying up in the Capitol. I'm sure I'm hardly prese-_

Blinking as his eyes flitted upward, his footfall halted from a fleeting glimpse of a black object moving overhead. Breath held in listening as his vision scanned the dark sky above, something rustled nearby and her skin rippled with a shiver.

_Uh..._

Eyes sinking down to Alyssa once more, she turned her head to him in the following stillness.

"What?"

"Just saw something." He whispered.

"Something?"

"In the air."

Finding her eyebrow rising in response, he nodded, and her lips parted.

"What did it look like?"

Suddenly, the forest echoed with the sharp snapping of dozens of branches. Then, several more violent smashes through foliage ensued, followed by a piercing, blood-curdling scream. Immediately dropping low onto hands and knees, the pair's eyes were wide open, listening as a captive audience to the terrible fate that just befell someone, and then flinching from the booming report of a cannon. Then with another crunch of wood debris in the distance, the land fell silent as the source of terror inexplicably vanished.

Alyssa clutched the earth beneath as both of them kept their heads on a paranoid swivel.

"...Whatever that thing looks like."


	12. Chapter 12

Eyelids prying open, following the mottled trunk of an Aspen tree up to a web of bare branches, a spindly silhouette seemed to reach out to the light blue sky above. Reaching a hand up, with dry leaves sliding free from the fabric of a shifting bedroll, scratched and blood-stained fingers spread outward, mirroring the branches with her digits.

_Morning... And not dead._

Unzipping the sleeping bag with a fumble of her other hand, Alyssa groggily sat up, looking around at the eerie forest gloom around her. The movements of a nearby bird caught her eye, hopping closer and looking at her briefly, only to wander elsewhere, poking under leaves with curiosity.

Her hand sank down, running her fingers down the shaft of her axe, brushing aside leaves that had begun to cover it overnight.

"Hey."

Jumping with a start, dropping the handle that she had started to lift, she turned her head to the blonde male stirring from his own leaf-covered bedroll beside her.

"Mm. Morning."

Her eyes lowered to her lap as she crossed her legs, forcing the bag open further and exposing her legs to the chilly morning air. With a fumbling reach over, stretching from the outward lean, she unearthed their backpacks, handing Oliver his, and then tugging apart the knot on her own satchel, prying the top flap open and digging into its contents in search of remaining food.

_I think... I would kill for some of my factory's oatmeal right now._

* * *

Sitting on the thick remains of a fallen trunk, with her backpack seated on her shoulders, Alyssa carefully tied the axe to the rope loop around her hips, having been denied the ability a day before.

"...If anybody's up there, we'll flush them out again. Shouldn't be too hard at this point."

With a tug on the knot, Alyssa's lungs emptied in conclusion of the effort, and Oliver stood up, kicking ground clutter around to cover their presence. Calmly approaching his seated compatriot, his palm settled to rest on the handle of his machete.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, right..."

Hesitating as he sank down in front of her, his head tilted in an inspection of her neck.

"Chin looks better."

Hesitating, and touching her fingers to the healing pair of cuts under her jaw, she looked aside.

"Good." _Because for a while I thought I was done for. Why that girl didn't go for my throat..._

Rising to her feet, they turned and began into a heading towards the mountain looming in the distance, trudging through an endless carpet of fallen and rotting foliage as they approached the uphill slope.

_Still snow in a few places... I don't know how cold it was but I swear for a moment I saw fr-_

Her thought trailed off as a figure nearby sat upright beside the concealed fabric of a previously unseen tent, rubbing his eyes, and then confirming his sight with the outward thrust of a bulky arm.

_Tatius._

"It's THEM!"

Aquila's head burst from the inside of the tent from his statement, followed by the darker archer boy rising from behind the tent, and for a few fleeting seconds, five teens stared at each other in disbelief.

Blasting aside into an immediate flee, both Oliver and Alyssa stormed away from the scene in a running rush of terror up the hill as three more pairs of footsteps started up a short distance behind them.

"Keep running, THREE!"

"We know where you hide!"

Jeers hollered from behind kept the adrenaline throttle wide open as the pair scrambled up dirt and rock, pushing hard to keep climbing and running to escape their pursuers. After mere minutes of a non-stop chase, legs grew weak with exertion as the dilapidated sheet metal of the mine structure crept into view in the distance above, and eyes remained warily wide from the frustrated shouts from behind.

_We're up here, but, why, and where, and how do we..._

Mind scrambling as her muscles complained, fighting the last stretch of the mountain's soil and rocks and being met with the yellow tailings pile, Oliver stormed up ahead of her, scrambling up the shifting yellow soil and clambering up onto the end of the covered bridge. With a following turn and grunt, he yanked an exhausted Alyssa up in front of himself. Crawling on all fours, and then weakly stumbling to their feet, the teens fumbled through the dark structure, hearts beating furiously.

"Where do we go?"

"I don't know."

Her eyebrows contorted with despair amidst his near-hyperventilation.

"I don't KNOW!"

"Then HIDE!" She yelped, and after several bounds forward, boots clomping along old timber planking beneath, both of them spun around opposite corners of the newly opening room at the end, collapsing out of sight of the covered bridge.

_We're done. This is... Ah, huh, this is it..._

Trembling, hearing voices and scuffling sounds approaching, her hand found and squeezed the shaft of the axe, pulling it free from its awkward perch on her hip. Three pairs of footsteps briefly clambered on the wood floor, only to resume walking seconds later, each step produced a harrowing echo inside the building.

***WHAM***

A startling slam issued from the covered bridge, and an errant object fell from the ceiling, clattering onto the wooden floor as the building seemed to ripple with a shudder.

"...What was that?"

Listening closely as Aquila spoke in a hush, both Oliver and Alyssa peered towards each other as two separate thumps ensued, and several planks and timbers of wood groaned, becoming laden with weight. With two more thumps, sounding more and more like that of large feet, several lengths of timber began to splinter and pop, and reserved human footsteps quietly began to fade, drawing the duo's attention into the passage they sat around with inward leans.

Suddenly -

***SMASH***

The wall of the bridge was pierced by a massive beak, and then the head of a creature forced itself inside, launching broken wood into the hallway in both directions. Screeching angrily as it spotted the humans within among the cloud of dust, the beast was then met with the horrified screams of several teens as it thrashed around and thrust its head up, tearing open the tar paper ceiling with ease and flinging shingles and wood debris into a skyward tumble. Then, a huge pair of thin and sharply clawed legs and feet tromped down and clutched onto the floor of the bridge as it began ripping the walls and roof of the structure apart, working its way inside and finally causing the further trio of tributes to begin a hasty retreat from the unfolding chaos. Finally, after numerous sharp bursts of wrenching metal and crunching wood later, Oliver and Alyssa simply watched in morbid awe as the bridge began to sag in front of them, buckling sideways and collapsing in defeat and tearing a sizable opening into the main structure of the mine.

Through this new hole, daylight revealed the black and grey head, body, and feathered wings of a gigantic bird.

Alyssa's mouth dropped open, staring at the creature in a stupor.

"Is THAT a Moc-."

Oliver's hand slapped onto her mouth, and he quite literally pounced over onto her, silencing her speech as both of them tumbled down onto the far corner of the room, listening as the massive new opponent hopped around and dug through the ruins of the bridge lying below. After a series of impatient swipes through debris, the bird's head thrust into a crevice, and a female scream filled the air, and the bird's body moved around, before jerking its head back out with a struggling, squealing human held captive in its beak. With a whoosh of a mighty pair of wings attaining lift, scattering a variety of small objects and producing a cloud of dust, the bird took flight, leaving the destruction with its prey.

Staring at the collar of Oliver's coat, still partly pinned by his body weight, Alyssa shifted her legs, watching with a racing heart as he moved aside from his perch.

"S-Sorry..."

"Its, uh, fine."

"I think that's what I saw last night."

Sitting upright against the wall after his whisper, her head thumped back against the wood behind, spreading her oily red hair above her rapid heartbeat.

"That... Thing shouldn't exist."

The crack of cannon fire ripped across the sky, and silence seemed to blanket the air, broken by hesitant shifts of clothing as wary eyes sought to inspect the wreckage of the bridge.

_If that was a girl I heard... I think Aquila is gone._

Squinting as a silent shadow was cast over the jumble of splintered timber and mangled steel, gaining clarity as the outline of a great spread of wings, eyes grew wide, and both Oliver and Alyssa shrank back from the opening as the creature glided down to earth, slamming into an abrupt landing with a crunch and tumble of wood.

Tucked against the wall, now nearer to the old door that sat slightly ajar, Alyssa watched as Oliver looked back and forth between both openings, assessing their position with increasing desperation. Then, something metal fell, much closer to both of them, and Alyssa gasped in alarm upon realization that the head of her axe had dropped carelessly onto the floor from her leg.

_Shit!_

Watching as the shadow of a large, feathery head appeared in the sunlight cast through the hole in the wall, waiting for further noise, the creature's silhouette looked in different directions, only to sink down and wander elsewhere.

Slowly rotating to Oliver beside her, he leaned closer, turning his mouth toward her ear.

"We've got to get out of here."

"P-Probably won't make ten feet."

"Well, that, or we ju-."

" _YOU!_ "

A male voice, laden with rage and disgust, hollered from somewhere beyond, and both of them froze.

"You horrible, ugly, flying THING!"

Several hefty clawed footfalls ensued, and the voice gained further recognition.

"You ate Aquila... Now I'm going to KILL YOU!"

The unseen bird suddenly sped into shockingly swift motion, and both Oliver and Alyssa scrambled forward, peeking out and watching as the beastly avian stormed over to the marginally intact end of the bridge, resting on the ground on its collapsed supports. Thrusting its feathered head inside, it suddenly recoiled in pain and anger as an arrow stuck into its neck, followed by another lodged into the muscle of its face. Thrashing about with repeated denial, the bird's wings swept around, striking a nearby tree and snapping off numerous branches, tangling foliage in among its feathers. Realizing that the bird was otherwise occupied, Oliver gripped Alyssa's shoulder, finally pulling her attention away from the sight.

"Time to go."

"Wha, out there?"

"Somewhere away from here. Won't be long before that thing starts looking in here too."

Hesitantly nodding with uncertainty, she gripped her axe as he opened the door, wincing as it creaked. Hurrying upright onto her feet, stepping outside onto the path leading away from the mine, only a few steps were mustered before both of them turned and watched as Tatius stormed out of cover, facing off against the bird with his bloodied sword. Stumbling out through the debris, keeping jabs of its beak at bay as the archer boy repeatedly pelted the monstrous bird with arrows, a foot full of ominously large claws swung at him, narrowly missing and allowing Tatius to swing the sword up into the bird's wandering wings, greeted with a spray of blood and a sharp screech, and then unexpectedly, a jumble of building debris kicked from the creature's empty foot. Knocked backward into a stumble onto his rear, the muscular male attempted to brandish the sword again, only to be grabbed by the bird's foot and simply flung into the air, spinning helplessly into the sky beyond.

The three remaining tributes watched and listened as the silhouette of a body vanished, crashing through branches and landing with velocity, punctuated by the expected blast of a cannon mere seconds afterward. The bird then looked left and right at its surroundings, and as if on cue, realized with a further turn that two more humans were standing nearby. Its head tilted, and both of their eyes grew wide as it stared at them, only to turn and launch aloft with great power, spreading its wings in a glide right at them.

Oliver fumbled for his machete, and every bit of Alyssa's being screamed at her to run, only for her hands to come together on the shaft of the axe, raising it up high above her head. Gripping the black-bladed weapon in her hand, her arms coiled back and then swung forward with a fierce grunt of terrified energy, burying the tool into the breast of the huge bird. In a split second, finding the weapon gliding back across her upper arm amid a face full of large feathers, an immediate loss of breath coincided with a backward slam onto the earth behind, and her eyes found a steady seep of blood pouring down onto the dry grass beside a large three-toed foot, adorned with spear-like claws curling into the earth beside her head. With several tromps and horrific screeches erupting from the creature just above, Alyssa gasped for breath as her vision turned her head upward, watching as a steady stream of thick, hot blood dribbled from her axe, thoroughly lodged into flesh beneath the thrashing beast's neck. Seconds later, Oliver stumbled over, yelling as he swung the machete at it with aggressive outward slashes, several times striking its wing and lopping off clusters of feathers, forcing the bird to recoil with stomps aside, already busy with a fight to remove the weapon stuck beneath its own head. Seeming to give up on the effort, the avian began several attempts to fly, finally rising aloft and weakly storming away, leaving behind numerous trails and puddles of blood darkening the dry earth.

Staring angrily at the wounded monster as it disappeared from sight in an uneven flight around the mountain, Oliver wiped his forehead with the back of his wrist, and with a turn, sank down next to Alyssa, pulling her upright by her shoulders. Arms slackening, she slumped forward, staring at her boots as oxygen finally seeped into her lungs.

"Hey, you alright?"

"I..."

Attempting to speak, only to notice his grave expression directed towards her arm, she then noticed the torn sleeve of her jacket as warm blood began to drip from her wrist onto the ground.

"Get that off, right now."

"Ah, kay."

Blinking as he tore her backpack off of her, and then helping her delicately remove the piece of attire with several awkward pulls on the zipper and sleeves, she then sharply inhaled and watched, wide eyed, as fresh blood oozed down from a lengthy gash along the upper bicep of her arm, reaching up to the outside of her shoulder. Rediscovering speech and pain in the same instant, her mouth dropped open with a blast of sensory alarm.

"Oh my. Oh my... That's, ohhhh this hurts so bad its..."

Tearing her vision from the sight as he rose to his feet, her jacket in hand, she looked up at him as he cut both of the sleeves off with two quick jerks of his machete, casting the torn and bloodied one aside. Splitting the sleeve open with another jerk, he then brought it over and placed it over the wound. Immediately wincing, he then took her other free hand and set it upon it, causing her to gasp and squirm as she started holding the fabric in place.

"I don't suppose you have more of that stuff you used for your chin..."

She shook her head, and he sighed sadly.

"I don't... Think it will, nngh, help."

He nodded and moved over, sitting next to her and resting her arm onto his knee as he held onto the sleeve. Her other hand simply sank down to her lap, curled into a fist, and she shut her eyes.

"...Think I lost the axe."

"Well, you probably killed that bird." Oliver breathed, glancing around into the sky once more.

Her eyes opened, and the rope tied around her waist remained, albeit limp and empty.

_Dammit._

* * *

Alyssa sat still, eyes closed, as Oliver slowly cleaned blood and grime from her face, now sacrificing her own socks for the job. The rope, cut in half, held the tourniquet around her arm.

Dousing the sock with a splash of water from a canteen, his hand rose to her face with a lean closer, and he wiped her brow and nose, and then wiped his fingers, discarding the stained cloth with toss out of the jagged hole in the wall beside them. Sitting and crossing his legs, his backpack shuffled as he slumped back against the wall.

Her eyes lowered to the bloodied bundle around her arm, and she stared at the repurposed and knotted rope.

"Thanks."

"Mm."

"I don't know about you... But I didn't know birds could get so big and... Nasty, like that one."

"They don't."

She looked at him, and he shook his head in further answer.

"...That thing was not natural."

Point taken, she looked down at the sleeping bag under them, and breathed a sigh, listening to the near-silence of the mountainside beyond.

_A Capitol creation... Thunderbird... Jay... Flying beast thing._

"Anyway... Should rest for now. I doubt that demon is going to come back."

Eyelids closing in a furrowed grimace, arm throbbing, she released a held breath.

_Better be dead... After taking my axe with it._

* * *

Alyssa watched, helplessly captive in the grasp of giant bird feet, as a singular raptor claw of the openly bleeding monster bird drew a cut into the underside of her chin. Reaching down, hesitating over her arm as blood spilled down her neck, stinging like acid, her face was then shoved to the side, and the bird morphed into the girl from District Seven, revealing a knife made from the same claw. Unable to speak properly, her mouth shot open as the bony blade dug into her arm in an upward swipe, slicing it open and grinning at the fresh spill of blood as Alyssa's face contorted, only for her intended scream to remain silent.

Looking down, seeing a sword embedded in the girl's gut where the axe previously was, the floor below coursed with unending streams of steaming hot blood.

"Alyssa."

A voice lifted her eyes upward, and the deformed brunette girl turned her head fearfully towards it.

"Alyssa..."

_Dad?_

"Alyssa, wake up."

"I am awake!"

"Wake up..." The voice whispered.

Her eyebrows furrowed, and then relaxed in realization. In a snap, her eyes flitted open to Oliver, leaning over her.

"...There you are."

She took in a deep breath, back in reality, and now feeling sharp, real pain in her arm.

"O-Oliver."

"You were having a heck of a nightmare, or something."

She sighed, laying still as he watched her with ongoing patience.

"I was. Saw tons of... Things." _Bloody things. Damn._

"Well, those were just visions, and they're over."

"Y-Yeah. I guess."

"I'm going to fix up dinner... You stay put and keep resting."

She exhaled, closing her eyes briefly.

_Food, and rest. Okay._

* * *

_Inhale. Hold. Exhale._

Alyssa lay still, watching the ceiling above as her arm throbbed miserably. Beside her, Oliver leaned closer to her, holding a roughly cut apple slice in his fingers. Her right hand rose, but he pushed it away and held the slice in front of her mouth.

"I'll feed you."

Her eyes relaxed, and she carefully bit half of the slice, before chewing and swallowing.

"I'm... I hate to say this but, we're gonna need to start finding more food by tomorrow."

Her eyes narrowed, and he sighed from her expected silence.

"...We don't have very much left."

She turned her head to the side, grimacing from his next statement.

"So far we've been lucky, but... Might end up doing the old district diet again."

* * *

Oliver sat next to Alyssa, her elbow propped onto his knee, in the dark gloom of the mine structure as the evening set it. Their eyes stayed together, tiredly watching the other's irides with little movement and even less emotion expressed, but after a unknown span of minutes, her arm jerked, and she lost concentration, turning her head.

"Alyssa."

She raised her brow slightly in answer.

"What would you do if you win?"

Turning back and staring at him from the statement, her lips slowly parted.

 _Win?_ "...Uhh, I'd go home and hope everybody around me still thinks I'm human."

Met with several blinks, her mouth and mind formed additional words from his expression.

"...What about you, Oliver? You'd be better off than me."

"Well... I'd, um, I'd make sure my mom and dad, and my sisters, get to eat as much as they want. And then we could leave that tiny little apartment, and live in a house."

Alyssa lay still, trying to imagine siblings.

"I wish I could see your sisters."

His eyes sank from her whisper.

"Me too."

_Well, actually, I wish I could just see mom and dad..._

She looked aside from the thought, and both of them breathed heavy sighs.

"I just hope one of us wins after all."

"We will... I mean, we've gotten this far, haven't we?"

"Yeah."

_But there's no guarantee, Oliver. If that bird didn't get us, those two from Two would have gotten us... And then nothing would even matter._

Their attentions arose to the chime of a small electronic tune in the distance, and both of them sat still as it began to echo, only to watch with great disbelief as a silver parachute coasted in through the hole in the wall nearby, sinking into a landing on the floor with a momentary skid on the rough concrete.

Oliver lurched forward onto his knees and retrieved the object, and after several inspections of the glinting and flying device, swiftly returned to Alyssa's side and set the canister between them. With a quick jerk of an opening latch, he pried the attached container open, and blinked at the contents neatly packaged inside.

"What's in there?"

"Food."

"Y-yeah?"

"Meat, and rolls, and..."

Lifting a tube of ointment from inside, along with a slip of paper, he squinted at the mysterious message printed on it.

"Medicine?"

"Looks like it."

They traded a look, and she carefully pulled the knotted rope around her tourniquet apart, watching as it slid aside into a bundle onto the floor.

"Lets try it."

He set the slip of paper onto her lap and knelt over her, carefully removing the ragged sleeve from her arm. Spending a moment taking in the angry, bloody gash in her bicep, he then unscrewed the lid from the tube, and squeezed at least half of the tube's jelly-like contents onto the bloody spot of the tourniquet. After a pause, he quickly wrapped it back around her arm, and her free hand held it on as he began to wrap the rope around it again.

With a slight tug, a knot was formed, and he sat back, but Alyssa's brows furrowed as her arm began to tingle, increasing into a frown as her shoulder muscle started to ache.

"Do you feel anything?"

Her eyes flitted to his.

"Starting to kinda h-."

Her face contorted, and speech stopped as her arm was suddenly searing with pain. Oliver watched, dumbfounded, as her arm stretched out, and she began to writhe with incredible discomfort, sucking in a breath of shock.

"Um, is, are you doing alright?"

She looked at him, breathing in quick spurts.

"This h-hurts... Horribly! Are you sure that's medicine?!"

He looked at the bottle, but was met with familiar plus-shaped first aid symbols in the dim light.

"I'm sure!" He blinked, dropping it and grabbing her writhing wrist, preparing to tear to the tourniquet back off. Then, inexplicably, her arm slackened, and a slower breath of relief pushed from her lips. Her eyes peeked open, and she looked at her arm in disbelief when the prior pain all but disappeared.

"Better now?"

"...I don't know." She breathed, her hand hovering over her arm after the sudden wave of relief.

"Sure looked like that hurt."

"Felt like... Burning hot metal stuck in my arm."

"Maybe that's something to drive the pain away."

She shook her head in denial.

"...By making it hurt worse before going away? I hope that torture was the last of it."

Flexing her hand and fingers, met with a dull buzzing feeling, she watched discreetly as Oliver picking up the slip of paper from her leg. Eyebrows quirking with interest, he handed it to her, watching as she pulled it from his grasp.

_'Be prepared. - M'_

She lowered it, and looked at the blonde kneeling beside her.

"Prepared for what?"

"Whatever is next... Hope you're prepared for food."

Chest rising and lowering with uncertain breath, Alyssa looked towards the hole in the wall, with the sky beyond the broken tendrils of metal swiftly darkening.

_These days sure go by quickly... But we're still here. Trying to keep our sorry souls alive one way or another._

Watching as he pulled off his boots, setting them aside and dragging the silver box closer, he pried out a small bundle of light-colored rolls and an immediately appetizing package of cooked meat.

_How many people are left, anyway? There's that one kid with the bow, and... Who else?_

Wracking her mind, she stared at the blonde's fatigued and unwashed face as he pried the newly arrived meal free from thin plastic wrapping, only for a haunting realization to creep across her skin, propagating from her mind.

_You, and me... And if it somehow comes down to it... It'll either be you, or me._

Eyelids slamming shut, heart racing from the deadly prospect, her hand tucked against her hip, lamenting the absence of her axe.

_...And just my luck, I don't have any kind of weapon. You have that machete, and..._

Rolling aside onto her uninjured arm, her brow contorted as she faced the mine's cold black wall.

_...You have more to live for than I do. But all the same, I'd prefer not to die. Everybody that gets thrown in here would rather not die. So, when it comes down to the final two... Who's going to die?_

Taking a cool, careful breath into her lungs, her vision reopened to the gloom of night and reality.

_We'll find out. Sooner or later._


	13. Chapter 13

A restless sleep, fraught with tingling aches of healing wounds, brought the morning sun back into the sky, only to be obscured by a blanket of cloud cover. Trying to ignore the resumption of hunger within, mere hours after the nearly-magical arrival of sponsor-gifted food, Alyssa perused the contents of both of their backpacks, finding with increasing dismay that their combined amount of food was indeed scarce - One whole apple, and a spare few tidbits from prior meals.

 _Not even any crackers. Those were nice while they lasted_... "Hey, um."

Catching Oliver's attention, just as he began towards the room's wooden door, the consecutive line of speech in her throat ceased instead, and his lips parted after a momentary wait.

"Going to get kindling for another fire... I'll be back."

"Oh. Alright."

Vision sinking to her arms, with hands seated inside his bag, she then glanced aside to the shorter pile of rope beside her knee.

_If only my axe wasn't gone... Damn. How is he going to get firewood anyway? Find a bunch of soggy sticks on the ground and... I don't know._

Her eyes rose back to the nearby hole in the wall, staring out at the flat layer of moisture suspended in the sky.

_Hopefully it doesn't snow again..._

Jumping with a start as the door creaked open, with old hinges popping unhappily, Oliver appeared inside with two fistfuls of grasses and small sticks.

"Got some tinder... Now for wood."

He looked around, and for a moment, stood still, touching the side of his hip.

"Alyssa... Do you have my machete?"

Blinking in response to his odd question, she lifted his open backpack with both hands, peeking inside.

"No, I don't."

"Well, its not in its, ah, holder... Have you seen it recently?"

"Not since last... Night."

Watching as he stepped out of the shaft of daylight entering from the doorway, visibly squinting and crossing his arms, Alyssa stared at his confused motions with increasing concern.

"Where in the world did that thing go...?"

He turned around, and Alyssa lifted and turned his backpack over in momentary curiosity. Suddenly, his body slammed into the wall behind himself, and two different grunts of exertion turned into one male yelp of sudden, horrific pain. Immediately jerking upward from the scuffle, her vision discerned a blonde girl holding him against the wall with her arm, holding his machete that was now buried into his gut.

"OLIVER!"

The opponent, now visible as Shimmer, released her grip on him and promptly marched directly at Alyssa. Recoiling back in a shriek and crawling backwards, attempting to stumble up to her feet in terror, Alyssa was helplessly grabbed by her neck, dragged upright, and slammed hard against the wall beside herself. With thick and strong knuckles latched around her victim's throat, the young blonde woman, just as rough and marred from a week in the arena, stared at Alyssa contently as she struggled for breath. Shimmer's knee then jerked up into her stomach, and Alyssa coughed in pain, limbs drooping from a sudden loss of breath and energy as her lungs complained in desperation.

"You two almost had it made... District Three, right? One of you could have won... Made everybody at home happy and proud... But that's too bad now."

She then tightened her grip even further, met with Alyssa's mouth simply quivering, and her green eyes drooping, fighting suffocation.

"Neither of you will go home. Because you'll both be dead. Dead for being the stupid little pair that you are."

Fingers squeezing even tighter around her neck, Alyssa grew limp, tears drifting from her eyes.

_I'm, this is... Over._

Out of nowhere, Shimmer jerked forward, and sucked in a shocked, sharp breath beneath eerily widened eyes. The previously impervious grip of her hand loosened from the sink of a slackening arm, and Alyssa took in a life-saving rush of air as the blonde girl was torn away from her, only to be swung around, revealing the sight of Oliver ripping his machete out of her backside with a dribble of blood immediately coursing off of the blade.

Sliding down against the wall behind in a daze, taking in gulps of air, Alyssa watched a series of violent actions as the blonde male slammed into Shimmer, knocking her down onto the floor below. Descending upon the girl as she tumbled face-first onto the floor, he raised the blade in his fist and thrust it down again, stabbing her a second time in her lower back. Jerking it back out, he cast the machete aside and rose to his feet with a stumble, staring darkly at the choking, convulsing opponent beneath.

"I hope District One is happy and proud now."

He then stooped down, grabbed Shimmer by her arm, and drug her forward and over the edge of the hole in the wall, watching as she tumbled into the debris below. He then turned around, and after grabbing his torn shirt, fingers greeted with a coat of his own blood, he weakly stepped over and knelt in front of Alyssa, both of them visibly shaking.

"We've got to get out of here... This p-place is no good for us anymore."

She looked down at the blood on his fingertips, and her fingers curled, staring at the tear in the front of his shirt, surrounded by a slowly increasing patch of blood. Her vision then rose to his face, and he shook his head, eyes visibly widened with increasing fear. A sharp blast of cannon echoed through the air, and she slowly stood to her feet, watching as he struggled upright again. Beginning a pathetic procession of steps to and out of the doorway, he hobbled behind her with labored breath, and she finally, hesitantly stepped up beside him, snaking her good arm beneath his shoulder, doing her best to heave him upright. Continuing onward, their pace continued to slow, and his free hand repeatedly padded and clutched his chest, finally resulting in a braking of his feet, refusing to walk further.

"I can't... I... Can you... Carry me?"

She exhaled in a whimper, attempting to move closer, only for him to weakly collapse from her shoulder onto the slope of earth, drooping onto his side mere seconds later.

"S-Sorry, I'm..."

"No, just... I'll just be here."

Staring at her crumpled comrade, she slowly sank down onto her knees. Her mouth attempted to produce any useful words, only to be repeatedly blocked by abject horror, eyes magnetized towards a flow of blood openly seeping from his stab wound. Losing a battle against sanity as the both of them continued to breath heavily, his arm moved, touching her elbow, and her eyes slammed shut in response.

"I'm s-sorry."

"Alyssa."

Flitting back open from hearing her name, his chest convulsed with sharp, painful breaths.

"You're going... You need, to win. For Three, and for my sisters..."

His statement swirled in an echo in her mind, and her gut twisted from the latter end of it.

"...I'm sorry, you have to see me like this."

Her mouth opened, only to clench shut again. _Why... Why? Why are you sorry? You're... You're just on your way... Out of all of this._

Stare softening, meeting his glassy eyes that seemed to relax, her shoulders slumped as a medley of conflicting feelings and thoughts catapulted back and forth across her mind.

"Its... Alright."

Lips held open after her simple statement, the smile that crept onto his chapped and reddened lips seemed to provide a different response than was intended, prompting half a smile to weakly rise upon her complexion.

_Neither of us have to worry... Because I won't have to be the one to do this to you... Any longer._

Heart sinking as a variety of fleeting memories from the training center wandered across her mind's eye, a heavy sigh emptied her lungs.

_We were a team... Working together, but only for so long. I think neither of us wanted to talk about it... If we would make it... To that point._

A thunderous blast from a distant cannon jolted her vision up to the grey sky, only to float back down to earth, eyes descending to the motionless body beside her knees. Vision losing focus, her body seemed to increase in mass, keeping her pressed down against the earth as reality set in.

_I think I should have died, at least six times now. So why are you the one laying here..._

Swallowing, a sour taste creeping onto her tongue, she lurched upright, looking aside at the forlorn structure of the mine, and then back down at the corpse beside her feet. Face contorting into an open-mouthed frown, she looked in several directions at her cold, damp, and unfriendly surroundings, heart racing.

I _'m... What am I... I'm just..._

Mind fumbling with indecision as her empty stomach churned, she finally sprung aside from Oliver's slain body, hurrying into a downhill run away. Passing through a small group of pine trees after several bounds, she stumbled over an unseen root and her hands suddenly flew out in front of her, limbs jerked upward as she met the course ground in a tumble, sliding to a swift halt.

_Oww._

Fumbling upward onto her elbows, with blood-smeared forearms decorated with dirt, dead foliage and the uncomfortable wetness of slushy snow, she crawled forward, only to stop and simply give up again. Dropping onto the ground as her now-sore wrists, scratched arms and wounded shoulder all screamed at her mind, her mouth opened, and a miserable sigh seeped out, followed by a flood of tears.

_Oliver... You had a life to live for. I'm just... Useless._

Chin sinking, and red hair tangling among a tuft of wild grass, her mind swirled, dark and clouded with misery and heartache.

_You're dead now. Because of Shimmer. District... One? They send in tributes every year, just like everyone else... But they aren't winning this time. Oliver killed her... And she killed him afterward, with that damn machete..._

Her eyes narrowed, expression darkening from a vision of blood dribbling from the lengthy black blade, and then another, from the curved edge of her axe.

_...Shimmer was just a tribute. She almost got me too... Could have taken down both of us in one go, with that career thirst for blood... But that didn't happen. You didn't get me, and neither did that girl from Seven, and..._

Eyes widening, as haunting imagery of the giant bird from only a day prior swooped into her imagination, a strong breath pulled into her lungs.

_Neither did that bird._

Concentrating on one of several pebbles just in front of her face, she blinked repeatedly as a storm of imagery appeared in front of her, of the Reaping, and the roaring Capitolite populace in the streets and seats of the grand theater.

_Everyone, and everything is out to get me, isn't it. The Capitol. The Games. This awful game... For the Capitol's entertainment._

Her blood boiled, fueling a resurgence of willpower and prompting her arms to shove her upright, settling onto her knees once more.

_My life is probably ruined forever after all this... Murder and bloodshed... All for other people's enjoyment, right? Families and lives are being ruined... So why not shove some of the ruin right back?_

Her eyes narrowed, suddenly recalling the rusty metal drum of powder sitting inside the mine, and her legs lurched into upward motion, turning the misery into adrenaline as she whirled around, clambering forth back up the mountain.

_I killed that stupid bird, didn't I? Why not one-up the gamemakers again..._

Her running slowed as the dilapidated, partially destroyed mine came back into view. Wandering up onto the path, met with a glimpse of Oliver's deceased body a short distance away, marked by a trail of blood leading up along the path, and she turned her head away and paused, taking in a breath, before plodding further along the crimson-stained mud and dirt.

_Yep. He's gone._

Drawing to a halt, pushing open the structure's awful old door with the resultant series of pops and groans from its hinges, she stepped into the dim room, only for her boots to be immediately met with a puddle of liquid. Freezing from the almost sticky sound for a moment, her vision discerned the backpacks and scattered belongings near the corner, and then discovered several puddles and broad smears of dark blood adorning the floor.

_Holy shit._

Her stomach grew unsettled, and hands became clammy from the sight and smell, but she forced herself back into motion, quickly stepping over to the nearby tunnel, finding the steel container, and then pulling the lid off. Grey sand-like powder greeted her eyes, and she tossed the lid aside with a clatter, before gripping the container, and stepping aside as she tipped it over, spilling a large pile onto the bloodied floor below.

Surprised by the amount of material spilling out, she drug the container aside, and kicked the pile, spreading some of it along in a line towards the door. Tromping over and finding the backpacks again, she tossed hers aside, stuffing the remnants of food into Oliver's, along with his slingshot. Zipping up the satchel and swinging it around her good arm, she looked back and forth at both openings of the building, and then kicked more of the powder along towards the doorway. Pausing from the glint of a blade, she backpedaled and crouched down, barely keeping her stomach's unhappiness at bay as she then found the machete, coated up to the hilt in blood, sitting atop the sleeping bag that also sported a puddle of blood.

_There you are..._

Swallowing down sour saliva, she picked it up and quickly hustled out of the doorway, wiping the blade off on passing tufts of grass, and then pressing both sides into a patch of leftover snow. Inspecting the lengthy blade, she then turned around, opening the backpack and pulling out the old chunk of flint.

_Okay._

With tentative steps towards the doorway, she gripped a fistful of grass, tearing it from the rocky earth and spreading it out onto the end of the tail of powder. Taking a preparative, uncertain breath, she held the flint next to the machete, and struck it.

_Nothing. Okay._

Another attempt, and she eyed the damp blade, reflecting the clouds above.

_Still nothing._

She touched her hand to the floor, greeted with a length of tarnished old metal, previously unnoticed as part of the door frame.

_Maybe this will work..._

Holding the stone just before the flat iron, she jerked the angled rock forward, striking the surface, and was greeted with a brief shower of sparks. Her eyes widened when the tinder bloomed into a flame, and her heart instantly sped up when individual grains of the powder began to fizzle and pop.

_Ohhh, uh, I should p-_

A consistent hiss of burning and small bangs filled her ears, and she dropped the flint rock, turning and running back down the path in a flight of terror, hands fumbling into a press of palms over her ears.

*KA-BOOM*

A flash, shockwave, and then a wave of heat erupted as the walls of the mine were blasted apart, greeting her backside with a potent shove forward, and then yanking her attention back to a symphony of destruction as the roof caved in, and the structure collapsed and tumbled down onto the debris of the bridge below. With a wisp of smoke rising from a twisted mess of metal and wood, she evaluated the sight of utter obliteration, gripping the dripping machete in her hand.

_There, gamemakers, and whoever the hell... Just ruined your building that helped ruin my life._

* * *

Wandering aimlessly deeper into the dead wintry forest, spreading wider and thicker with each descending step, Alyssa clutched the machete in her right hand. With barely enough of anything to survive with in the backpack jostling behind her shoulders, her body simply kept marching along. Operating solo once again and fully intent on survival, her mind waded through a haze of contempt and anger, and her eyes wandered up ahead of her as a breeze slowly picked up in strength, refusing to die down after some time.

_Stupid wind. Go away._

The cold air brought back a feeling of wetness around her eyes and on her cheeks, and she rubbed them with her two fingers, realizing a moment later that she just smeared blood and dirt onto her already-grimy face. Eying her hands, both visibly dirty and caked with dry blood from a broad variety of wounds, her boots ground to an abrupt halt, hands rubbing together in a moment of frustration. With hardly anything coming off as a result, her shoulders slumped, only for her right arm to rise, gripping the machete and flinging it into the distance in front of her in a growl of disgust.

Standing still, she then exhaled from her action, brow furrowing in a grimace as she stepping forward, finding the cast-off blade sitting among the wet leaves.

_Everything's so disgusting and screwed up... And I'm just stuck here with it._

She wandered off to the side, finding a narrow hollow between a sizable rock and a tree. Sinking down and curling into a ball around the tree, she then pried off her backpack, shoving it beneath her head as an uncomfortable pillow.

_Might as well just lay here and die... What's the point to winning anymore._

Tears found their way back down her cheeks as she shivered from the wind.

_Stupid. The point of winning anymore... To return home. Return to District Three... Return, a victor._

_Yeah. Right._

* * *

Eyes reopening to the same dull grey sky above, clearing the fatigue of a nap with several blinks, the silhouette of the dead forest became clear, as did the torn sleeves of a jacket, a dirty and stained backpack, bloodstained boots... _Bloody hands, my hair..._

Unraveling from a curl around the rough and lifeless trunk of a tree, Alyssa sat up, pulling the backpack onto her shoulders,

_Not dead again. Okay.  
_

Finding the machete tucked against the roots of the tree, she stared at the angled blade as it still happily reflected light, offering an omnipresent reminder that the Capitol is still there somewhere... _Watching._

Taking in a shaky breath, with nearly every limb and muscle of her body protesting, she plucked the weapon into her grasp and stood to her feet, which were asleep and buzzing from a lack of blood. Walking the feeling off with several awkward paces around, she inspected her surroundings, eyes narrowing from the discomforting sight of a motionless landscape.

Exhaling, dull with aches and various pains, she leaned forward into an errant heading. Trudging along, her boots kicked through and crunched leaves in a constant monotony of sound. Pausing for a moment beside a boulder and swinging her backpack around onto her good arm, she leaned onto the large rock and awkwardly yanked the zipper open with several jerks. Reaching in to get a canteen of water, her chin then rose, slowly realizing that leaves were still crunching nearby, from footsteps that were not her own.

Quietly tucking the strap of the open backpack back over her wounded shoulder and sinking down onto her knees, her fingers gripped the machete defensively, and her eyes led her attention along in a back and forth sweep, keeping her head on a swivel towards the source of cautious footsteps.

_Somebody... Way too close._

Hunkering down closer to the ground, skin crawling as her heart reluctantly sped into gear, she froze when the footfall suddenly hurried into a run. Then, the twang of bow string led to a sharp yelp as a projectile found its target. A male individual breathed rapidly and growled in pain-laden exasperation, but within moments, the area grew silent, punctuated by the bone-chilling blast of cannon.

Alyssa's eyes grew wide as she cautiously stood to her feet, riddled with adrenaline as suspiciously quiet, reserved footsteps made their way closer.

_Dead. So very close to being dead._

The footfall silenced, and her eyes sank.

_So much for the valiant effort... If that's who I think it is, I'm screwed as soon as I move._

A distant shuffle of branches, and Alyssa turned, peeking over her shoulder around the rock, and then carefully leaning outward, seeing nothing beyond. Turning back with mild puzzlement as the source of footfall quite literally vanished from the area, she gasped in fright as the tribute from Ten, bow and all, suddenly emerged into view. Recoiling from her outburst and nearly walking right into her, the boy instinctively drew an arrow from the quiver on his back, but watched helplessly as she sprang forward into a lunge, colliding into him and plunging the machete in her hands directly beneath his ribs.

He looked down at the weapon in her hands, and then up to her face, both of them staring in mortified realization. Dropping the bow from his grasp, she relinquished her hands from the machete, watching as he pulled it out of himself, only for the blade to fall from his grasp and drop to their feet, soaked with another coat of blood.

"You're from Ten, right? District Ten?"

He nodded, sinking to his knees, and she stepped back to create distance as he weakly attempted to reclaim the machete, only for his hand to press into the earth beneath, holding himself up as he convulsed with spasms of pain from the lethal wound. Reminded suddenly and horribly of another person who suffered the same fate only hours before, Alyssa stared at his younger complexion as he eyed her, clinging to life. Tears welled up instantly, and she swallowed, throat becoming dry with guilt.

"I'm... Sorry. I know its too late... But I'm sorry. For you. And your family... And your district."

Tears dripped from his eyelids, but a mere moment afterward, his head drooped limply, and he sank to rest, doubled over on his knees.

Staring down at the corpse of the younger boy, tears freely wandered from her eyes.

_Darker skin and black hair, but exactly the same... As before. Another person, dead, thanks to me... My actions. Just trying to... Keep myself... Alive._

She stood and turned around, but after a few departing stomps away, she ripped her backpack off and flung it aside in a shriek of miserable anger.

_Dead! So many people, dead!_

Growling in a guttural, teeth-gritting scream until she ran out of breath, the exclamation emptied into a whimper, and her battered hands slapped up onto her face.

 _Boys and girls... Oliver... Mangled, and dead, and gone_... "Whhhyyyyyyyyy..."

Mouth silencing as her hair began to shuffle around from an unnatural current of air, leaves started to be blown aside as a cushion of heat and noise descended upon her.

_Is that..._

Her chin innocently rose upward, and her eyes took in the strange cage-like object that slowly descended upon her from above, and her body grew limp from the sight of an angular hovercraft above, with a circular turbine producing hovering thrust, driving away the arena's stifling cold air with its exhaust.

_It is._

Standing still as the silvery metal seat lowered to halt, suspended beside her with an invitingly gentle sway, she hesitantly turned and sat on it, only for an odd buzzing feeling to permeate through her skin, keeping her captive on the perch, unable to physically move her limbs or turn her head.

_I'm... Getting out?_

Her eyes strained to wander as she slowly lifted above treeline, glimpsing the lonely peak of the mountain rising in the distance, and then, darkness.


	14. Chapter 14

A series of blurry sights ensued in a whirlwind of change, from the dim interior of a cargo hold, to bright lights, unfamiliar people milling around both sides, and then a lengthy movement under a concrete roof, into a sterile white room. Something pricked her left arm, and a sensation of dull heft flooded intravenously through her skin, lowering her into a fuzzy state of slumber. Fading in and out of reality, Alyssa repeatedly awoke from a terrible medley of nightmarish imagery, to a different picture in the real world each time. After one particular instance of seeing years-old visions of her parents, her heart ached helplessly as she lay still, crying until no more tears drifted down her cheeks, before fading back to sleep again.

Finally, after several numb and stifled awakenings, she moved her right arm up, staring at the clean, soft skin that greeted her eyes. With a moment of clear cognitive memory behind a furrowed brow, she then pulled the sleeve of the gown up past her left shoulder, and stared dumbfounded at the little red line on her bicep, now just a healing trace of a previously large wound.

_Huh._

Her head flopped back with fleeting disbelief, and within moments, her eyes settled closed from the dim light inside the room, fading away again.

Regaining cognizance some time later, a strangely familiar scene greeted her eyes as a brunette man sat nearby, looking aside somewhere into the room.

"Mmmmmark." She mumbled.

Looking across his shoulder at her in surprise, a quiet sigh issued from his mouth as her arm reached out to him.

"Alyssa... How do you feel?"

She simply shook her head, and he cupped her hand into his own.

"Where..."

"In the treatment center. I-C-U."

Her chin rose, eyebrows perking, and he scooted closer on the cot, squeezing her hand.

_You, uh, see me? What..._

"You won, Alyssa."

Her mouth opened in an intake of breath, and he smiled, still in relative disbelief.

"You survived the games. You're a victor."

She exhaled, processing his words repeatedly.

_I, won. The games. Over. I won. I survived._

Her eyes flicked back up to him.

"I'm a V... Victor?"

"District Three's victor." He whispered with a lean. "I hear they're quite proud of you."

Her eyes sank down to the thin fabric of the blanket draped over her.

_I survived. Everybody else, died._

"They're going to wean you off the Morphling soon... Give you a day or so to recover. I'll be around if you need someone to talk to."

She slowly nodded, and the cot shifted as he stood up, set her hand onto her lap, and then released it and walked out of sight.

Head drooping back, her vision blurred, lazily wandering along the nearly featureless concrete ceiling.

_I survived. I actually... Survived._

Watching as the room's lights turned off, a small floor lamp flicked on, reflecting off the ceiling in a ghostly white-teal glow.

_Taking away the, uh, Morphling? Not the fuzzy sleep stuff... I haven't felt a thing for... However long now._

Her eyes slid shut again, and her mind slowly processed a returning wave of sad, vivid imagery from mere days before.

_Probably good. I know I was fairly messed up, towards the end... Now I'm a sterilized vegetable after... Blundering through that freezing cold nightmare._

* * *

_This is nice._

Alyssa sat in silence, eyes closed under an endless cascade of warm, clean shower water.

_Was hardly two weeks ago, where I'd dream of my parents now and then, waking up from the same old visions of their deaths from the accident, and the all the other little bits over the years of growing up on my own... Now, my conscious is racked by death and blood. One week inside that awful winter arena hosted twenty three murders, and I caused two of them. Two lives I can never replace, and all the others that will never get the chance to grow up and live on in this world of ours._

Reaching aside and tapping on the soft glow of a control panel, the water ceased falling from the nozzle, and her chin rose, staring at the opposite opaque wall.

_I'm not entirely sure I deserved survival, but here I am. Victorious... And scarred forever._

Standing to her feet, padding across the damp stone tile, she plucked a pair of thick folded towels from the counter adjacent to the shower. Wrapping herself inside both with several fumbling motions and seating her rear onto a nearby bench, her shorter red hair dribbled water in steady streams onto her toweled lap. Bringing the soft linen up and vigorously drying her hair, she then bundled it around her bosom once more, leaning back against the wall on her shoulders and remaining in perpetual silence.

After a period of staring at a fogged mirror, her eyes wandered over to the simple white sheets of a hospital bed, and she craned her neck upward, spotting an arrangement of brightly colored textiles spread out upon it.

_New clothes...?_

* * *

Hardly a minute after dressing into the comforting and colorful fabrics of a long-sleeved shirt and pants, three bizarrely groomed and decorated individuals appeared through the doorway nearby with Markell following in tow, and all three suddenly burst into elation as they ran up, surrounding her in a triage of hugs as recognition suddenly clicked.

_My, uh, stylists._

"You won, Alyssa!"

"I had faith you'd pull through to the end."

She looked at the slightly shorter woman, now sporting two-toned colors in her hair, and just like before, she simply succumbed to tears as she squeezed her arms around the living and breathing tribute.

"I think we all are quite proud of our victor." Mark spoke up, appearing in front of her as the stylists continued to share a barrage of embraces. "...But lets get back to the apartment. I think she's feeling a little claustrophobic in here."

_Oh, hah, yes. Believe me, these sterile rooms feel like a brightly lit tomb._

"Yes, yes! We need to fully cleanse her anyway... Poor dear sure could have used soap in that arena."

Alyssa nodded repeatedly, and within moments, was ushered with excited nudges and pulls out of the treatment center by her entourage, and into an awaiting car in an underground garage. Mere minutes and several turns later, she was then pulled right back out of the vehicle and led into the main entryway of the training center apartments, noticeably devoid of occupants in the lobby as they headed to the already-open doors of a large elevator.

_Hardly anyone here... Guess that's what happens when you wipe out your group of celebrities._

Feet decelerating to a halt, now in comfortable and simple walking shoes, her eyes closed as the others crowded into the car, only to reopen when the twin doors shut, and the room began to lift upward.

_Floor, three. District, Three._

Turning as the elevator grumbled to a halt, the doors split open with a gentle digital tone, revealing the eclectic and familiar decor of the training center apartment. Stepping into the expanse of the living space behind the others, a mirage of memories during training surfaced as she walked inside, filling her eyes with pictures of a time when everybody was simply preparing to kill and die.

_Yes. Tributes are celebrities, and then all but one die. Weird to think I'm the other kind of celebrity now... I survived. And now I'm popular for evading death and committing murder._

Her shoulder was shaken lightly, and she broke her focus from the dining table.

"We're going to bathe you again, and then you'll be dressed up in something absolutely marvelous for the interview tonight!"

She stared blankly at the stylist.

"...Interview?"

"Yes, silly! Every victor is interviewed after the games. You'll be looking lovely again by then, so don't worry."

She swallowed, and was then dragged along by her arm towards her bedroom. Looking at Markell for an answer as he watched with slight amusement, she resigned with an exhale as she passed her old bed, going into the bathroom.

_More interviews and cameras. I forgot they existed after I almost died repeatedly._

* * *

Alyssa wandered back to the door leading to the balcony after stuffing herself with an ample amount of lunch. Padding through the open doorway onto the concrete, she was immediately greeted by a warm midday breeze, and a distant roar of cheering in the square down below. Thousands of Capitol citizens were gathered in a broad mass, watching massive screens as blurry highlights of the games were replayed.

After mere seconds of observation, she averted her eyes and looked at the mountains on the horizon, taking in a deep breath as the breeze teasingly swirled around her arms and legs. Her shirt, loose and soft and made of various shades of light green, overlapped an equally loose and soft dark grey skirt, rippling from the wind.

The crowd below grew eerily silent, and her eyes cautiously drifted down to one of the screens. Met with a glimpse of an airborne bird, a startled breath pulled into her lungs, and she turned and walked right back through the door.

_No need to relive that right now... Hm?_

Her eyes rose when Markell motioned her over to a nearby couch, and she settled onto the soft leather next to him as he removed his sunglasses.

"I think you got a good enough glimpse of your fans... Have this."

She looked at him vaguely, and he simply handed her a glass of green liquid in response.

"You earned it, believe me."

_Oh. Liquor._

She lifted the glass to her lips, and drank a gulp of the liquid, feeling a tingle arise on her tongue and throat.

"Is this..."

"You'll be fine by tonight."

She drank another gulp, savoring the strange sensation in her mouth until it faded away again.

_Alright._

* * *

Sitting at the dining table, staring at the completely empty row of seats across the table, Alyssa sat still, with the remains of a several consumed portions of a midday meal scattered across a large platter.

_Oliver should have survived. At least he has family... Sisters, and a mom and dad. Now he's gone forever._

A sigh left her chest, stomach heavy and full with the riches of Capitol food.

_He told me to win for his sisters... And now that I made it out, I have to help them. Somehow. I can't let them suffer anymore after losing him... After everything he did to help my sorry ass, I owe it to all of them._

Head tilting back, resting back against the chair, her nose flared with continued breath.

_I just need to get home first, and then I can figure out everything._

* * *

Watching the girl in the mirror, staring eerily at herself in an emotionless glaze, her vision occasionally darted elsewhere, observing the progression of her reconditioning from a miserable, broken survivor, back into an innocent young woman.

_All this makeup won't do a thing for the nightmares inside... But it'll make me look pretty and cute again. A ploy for sympathy after a week of terror and bloodshed._

Lifted to her feet, she stepped around in a circle, and the stylists squealed with appreciation as the light greens and yellows of her dress swirled around, waving back and forth.

_Looks like... A grassy field._

Studying the reflecting lines of light on the dress closely, she then watched as a ring of synthetic flowers was delicately tucked into hair, and then eyed the girl in the mirror one last time before being led out into the bedroom.

_See? You don't look so bad after all._

Slipping into a low-heeled pair of shoes, she was then taken by both arms and led back into the main area of the apartment. Encountering Markell, his approach was halted by their movements.

"Hey."

She slowed to a stop, and looked over at him.

"First off, you look wonderful. Secondly... Good luck, and be careful with what you say. You're going to have a lot of people very eagerly listening to you."

She nodded with a breath, and he stuck his hands into his pockets as she was ushered along. Amid the intervening clatter of footsteps, her heart slowly increased in speed as she stepped into the elevator with the stylists.

_Another televised interview, and I'm... I don't really know what to expect this time._

Watching the doors draw together and sidle shut, her chin rose with her stomach as the car began to descend.

_How unfortunately familiar._

* * *

_"Oliver Allen... This year's victor, of the fifty-seventh annual Hunger Games!"_

The iconic voice of Caesar Flickerman rang through her imagination as she envisioned the scene again inside the car.

_Fancy that... Oliver winning, and me dead. I wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore, because I'd be gone and he'd return to his family. Instead, here I am, on my way to an interview to talk about how I barely survived. Not a single mention of going home yet, and not much to go home to in the end anyway._

_Congratulations, me._

The car drew to a halt, and the doors opened to the garage of the theater as she stepped out into the stark concrete environment. A group of four peacekeepers joined her entourage of stylists as they walked towards the entrance, only to stop at the door as they went inside. Passing through several more doorways, she suddenly found herself in a strangely familiar square room, and with the turn of a corner, a hallway opened up to another door, and a television screen sat on the wall next to it.

"It's just like before, Alyssa. You'll know when to go on stage."

"Just stay calm and don't be worried. We'll all be watching up there in the seats."

She turned to the woman, but was met with a hug instead of advice.

"I'll do my best."

With an exchange of looks from her response, the three stylists disappeared through the previous door, and the room suddenly became a vacuum of silence, causing her to scan the room in all directions.

_Last time it was this quiet... Was in the launch tube under the arena._

Seconds later, the screen in the distance switched on, and audio flooded through the speakers, making her skin crawl as she looked at the picture on the screen.

_Caesar. Riling up the audience, all for me._

Hesitantly drawing closer to the imagery on the screen, she jumped as the door beneath swung opened, but paused when she saw who it revealed.

"...Mark?"

He held his finger to his lips and stepped over over, scooping her inside his arm and pulling her through the doorway into the darkness of the backstage.

"How are you feeling?"

She sighed, heartbeat gaining rapidity as the audience's cheering increased in excitement and volume.

"...Terrible. I don't know what to say, and everywhere I turn I'm either worried, scared, or seeing some awful flashback."

"Ah, well, no matter what you'll do fine. He's there to help you talk, just like before."

"Y-Yeah. I remember."

"As soon as this is over, you're going home too."

She blinked, and he smiled from her silence.

"...Yes, I said it. You'll be back in District Three by tomorrow, and I'm coming with you."

 _What?_ "D-Don't you live here in the Capitol?"

"Yes, but the higher ups decided I have to keep an eye on you... Being an orphan and all. Somebody didn't like the idea of you being alone in the victor's village."

Her heart pounded as he looked at the curtain nearby.

"Victor's village...?"

He reached over and grasped her arm, bringing her over to the hidden entrance onto the stage.

"You'll see. Brace yourself."

She turned around, watching as he vanished into the darkness, and then swallowed as her attention turned back to Caesar's words booming over the crowd.

_This interview, and then home. Everybody in the world must be watching right now._

"...And now, the moment we all have been waiting for!"

She exhaled, riddled with nervousness.

"District Three's very own, Alll-yssa Ross-eau!"

Her eyes grew wide as the theater audience roared to life in applause, and she leaned forward, storming out into the projected lighting, briefly imagining Mark shoving her out. Right away, her eyes took in the immense size of the building and audience crammed within as she walked onto the stage, shoes clicking and heart thumping somewhere among all the noise.

Her dress, reflecting and waving with movement, gave off a distinct appearance of a wind-blown field of grass, only ceasing to move when she took Caesar's hand and sat down next to him. Her head turned toward the audience briefly, watching as thousands of people applauded her for simply being there, after all the terror she went through. The noise then died down, fading to silence as Caesar's arm lowered down to the side of his chair, bringing her attention back to him, orange hair and all.

"So, Alyssa... Here we are again."

"Yes."

Her eyes rose up to his, and he leaned forward in the chair.

"How does it feel... To be a victor?"

She swallowed.

"It's strange, I... Really didn't imagine winning, but it happened."

"You didn't?"

She shook her head.

"Being in there, I was... The whole place was completely different from what I've been used to."

"Certainly you planned on getting out, right?"

"Oh, well, of course. I think everybody does. But everybody else ends up hunting you when they realize you're still going... And with less people left, everyone gets more desperate."

"Indeed."

"Now, when I look back and think about it... It sure was fortunate that I survived at all. With everything that happened and everyone I encountered... I know I narrowly escaped a lot of bad situations."

Realizing his head had since turned back toward a massive screen, illuminating their chairs from behind, she leaned onto the arm of her seat with a furrowed brow.

"Yes, you certainly did, and speaking of which, we've got quite a movie to show from this past week."

A sudden explosion of excitement from the audience combined with unfortunate surprise as her head turned, and thousands of eyes watched as the screen faded black, then showing the crimson flag of Panem, and giant bold letters:

**57TH HUNGER GAMES**

She watched the screen, only to have her chair carefully turned by a grinning Caesar before he reclined back in his seat.

_What? No._

The pictured faded to an overview of the giant golden horn, and all of the tributes rising into the tree-filled arena on the pedestals surrounding it.

_Oh no._

She sat, heart pounding, as individual views of the tributes appeared one-by-one, moving clockwise around the circle.

_Ohhhh no. Not this._

Her hands gripped the arms of the chair as Oliver appeared briefly, and twelve tributes later, she appeared at the end.

_Not prepared for this. Not prepared in the slightest._

Her own expression on the screen defined her feelings perfectly - Silent, mind racing desperation.

_Nobody told me I was about to relive all of this again!_

She looked at Caesar with a furrowed brow, but he simply returned a cheeky grin, forcing her eyes back to the screen.

The sudden blast of a cannon startled everybody in the theater as the area around the cornucopia swirled into motion, followed by quick swipes of quick-footed tributes grabbing weapons, and mass bloodshed that followed. Death after death was shown in quick succession of scenes of the cornucopia bloodbath, and then brief cuts of Oliver, some small boy, and one of the careers running into the trees, and a suddenly portrayal of Alyssa fighting over the axe with the District Seven boy, punching him, grabbing the backpack, and running away in terror as the boy was then stabbed, and a knife stuck into a tree just behind her. After several views of tributes dispersing and a few careers banding together, it instantly switched into the first encounter with the girl from Seven as her machete whistled through her backpack.

_Oh, wow, yes, that could have been a lot worse..._

After the fight, night fell across the arena in a time-lapse, with glimpses of tributes setting up camps and hiding in the darkness, including a glimpse of Alyssa's first cave. Suddenly, the theater was blasted by another loud explosion, with a booming cascade of thunder echoing through the theater's interior. Flashes of lightning struck all over, and out of nowhere, a mid-morning chase up the mountainside ensued, and Alyssa shrank back in a cringe, knowing what was coming. Eyes closing in avoidance as an axe suddenly found its way inside a body, a knife dropped, and the axe lurched back out as a body crumpled to the ground, and a tiny Alyssa ran away into the woods beyond before the picture changed to rainstorm that followed, and the audience audibly whispered as several tributes trudged through the pouring water. Oliver was shown again, hiding under the bridge of the mine to stay out of the rain, and another time-lapse suddenly spun the footage to the next morning, filled with fog, and as the sun rose, the suspenseful theft of meat and rope, and then the initial tying of the holster for the axe.

A rise of laughter from the audience behind made her blush slightly, but the cameras followed her up the mountain, suddenly showing a glimpse of Oliver... Going down the mountain. An air of whispering excitement rose in the theater, and Alyssa's heart began to beat hard as she and Oliver found each other, and he pulled her up from the ledge. Within seconds, they both began moving along the mountain, happening upon the mine, and spying on the career camp underneath, before moving around below, barely avoiding detection, and wandering behind the smokestack as the sun set, and the moon rose.

The scene changed to them sneaking up into the top floor of the mine, and the picture time-lapsed again to snowfall, the pair waking up, and suddenly, night again, as they cooperatively distracted the careers and stole dinner. The District Four boy suddenly fell victim to Tatius' sword, and several tributes were seen huddling by fires in the snow, and a sudden repeat of the day before as their second dinner raid was carried out. Several cheers from the audience ensued as both of them successfully hid just before the careers returned to their camp, and then relocated.

Suddenly, a fire bloomed inside the mine, and Alyssa's eyes narrowed, chest thumping as a time-lapse cycled through the hours to the next morning. Out of nowhere, a chase downhill began, with her and Oliver running downhill in terror as they were pursued by the careers, and Alyssa was suddenly tackled, and subdued by the District Seven girl again. Blood was spilled as her chin was cut open, but Oliver suddenly came to the rescue, met more with cheers as the pair disappeared, and the girl was found and killed by District Two's duo. A scream pierced the air amongst the crashing of trees, and the screen burst into more running of another chase in the daytime, but as soon as the tributes found the mine, the monster bird appeared, and the bridge was rapidly destroyed as it thrashed around, and then pulled out Aquila and flew away, met with lots of horrified reactions from the theater audience as Alyssa squirmed in her seat. Cuts of the remaining tributes hiding in fear was suddenly interrupted by the bird's return, and within moments, Tatius was flung into the sky to his death, and the bird lunged toward Oliver and Alyssa both, only to be struck with her axe, driven away by Oliver, and flying away weakly after its thrashings for survival.

_Beast bird never came back... Good._

Alyssa cringed as she watched herself eye the gash across her arm, and the footage cut to the medicine being applied to it, and her pain-riddled reaction to it. Then, the next morning, Oliver appeared in the doorway with tinder, and for a moment, all was silent as he looked around. She then watched with great displeasure as Shimmer appeared from the rocky collapsed tunnel and stabbed Oliver, and he sank to his knees as she stepped over and strangled her.

_So that's where you... Holy shit, you were probably waiting there for a while. That whole morning... That's a scary thought._

Her heart beat furiously, watching as she almost died, and Oliver forced himself up, pulled the blade out of himself, stabbed Shimmer in the back, drug her to the floor, and then stabbed her in the back again.

Alyssa's hand sat over her mouth as she helped the blonde outside, but the picture changed to them on the ground, with Oliver visibly dying, and a sad breath pried apart her lips.

_You poor soul. You didn't deserve that, or any of this._

The screen changed from the scene, showing her wandering through the forest angrily, and within moments, a young man from Eight was killed by the boy from Ten, who was then killed by Alyssa shortly afterward. A mixture of fierce applause and sorrowful sobs rose into the air after the film ended, leaving Alyssa in a dejected state amid the cacophony of noise.

_Why... Show me all this again?_

The chair was turned around, but the audience was surprisingly sympathetic, quieting down and waiting patiently as her eyes eventually rose, lifting her downcast face to a sheepish glance aside at the show's host.

"Alyssa."

She took in a breath, and Caesar handed her his handkerchief, only to be met with a negative shake of her head.

_Nope... Not crying. Yet. Just have to lay down in bed and then it comes._

"You survived, because you were blessed with that boy as an ally and a friend."

Chin rising, and head tilting, she audibly sighed.

"Sometimes I feel that he should have been the victor... Obviously its too late now, but..."

"He seemed willing to do a fair amount for your sake."

Her eyes sank, fingers intersecting on her lap.

"He did. And I can never thank him enough for it."

Caesar reached his arm over, setting it onto her shoulder.

"Wherever he is now, I'm sure he's proud of you. For trusting him after all, and going on to win."

She smiled weakly, and after a moment, he offered his hand.

"Maybe he is."

Grasping her digits and raising her arm, and both of them looked out into the audience beyond, immediately met with applause and elation.

"Ladies and gentleman... Alyssa Rosseau, this year's victor, of the fifty-seventh annual Hunger Games!"

* * *

Less than an hour later, Alyssa sat in a high balcony, vision wandering across the towering architecture of the impeccably maintained metropolis. Just below, the avenue that hosted the tribute parade each year split the roaring crowd of many thousands of citizens in the stands below, running straight from the mansion to the remake center in the distance.

Looking over from a lone set of footsteps, her skin grew cold as Panem's very own leader, Coriolanus Snow, approached with ease, a golden crown in his gloved hands.

Awkwardly standing in attention as he drew to a halt in front of her, with a look into his unnervingly calm eyes, she steeled herself, breath held.

_Currently staring at the most powerful man in the world..._

"Miss Rosseau."

She blinked from the eerily calm voice, having never heard him in person.

_Uh. Hah._

Studying her tense, worried demeanor, he offered a smile, and his arms raised up.

"...Congratulations."

The crown settled atop her head of red hair, and she exhaled, wide eyed, as he turned and stood at the nearby podium, icy hands settling onto the railing of the balcony.

_Yeah... Congratulations, me._


	15. Chapter 15

Alyssa stared out of a heavily tinted car window in a haze of thought as she and Markell were driven to the Capitol's train station. Only minutes earlier, already emotionally depleted, she was subject to a sad goodbye from her three stylists, and a promise to send home both interview dresses someday soon.

_Not that crazy fancy clothes I probably won't wear again... Really matter anyway._

Twisting against the seat fabric, she looked to her mentor sitting next to her, but his attention was also beyond the window glass.

"Have you ever been... To District Three?"

Tilting back from her query, Mark shook his head.

"...Have you been outside of the Capitol?"

He shook his head again, and she sighed.

"They're two different worlds."

He offered a smile.

"I'm up for a change of scenery."

"Factories?"

"We have them here. They're mostly underground."

Her eyes wandered back to the window with a roll of her irides.

"Just making sure you know what my home is like."

"I've been briefed quite thoroughly about your District, Alyssa."

The car pulled to a stop, and both of them discovered a jubilant crowd lining the entrance to the train station just beyond as twin lines of peacekeepers kept a path open. Passing swiftly through a central hallway and passing through the self-opening doors into the terminal, a further crush of shouting and cheering Capitol citizens populated lines of portable barriers around the station platform, with an awaiting train humming with magnetic energy alongside it. Alyssa's heart beat steadily as individual flowers were thrown into the air by a variety of unseen individuals, and she offered occasional waves left and right as the group wandered halfway along the huge streamlined consist. Stepping up inside the open door of one of the coaches, she turned around, and after looking over the crowd through the doorway, she waved her hand in a broad arc.

_Thank you, bloodthirsty Capitol people, for bothering to show sympathy towards me..._

Disappearing inside with a turn, the door audibly slid shut, locking her in as she wandered into the interior one of the cars, eying the blue carpet below.

_Oh, yeah. Forgot about all of this._

She found a seat on a nearby chair, and after several minutes of waiting for the fanfare outside to fade, felt herself start to lean over from acceleration as the train began to move.

_...And we're actually, seriously leaving._

Head leaning, gazing out of an adjacent window as the station disappeared from sight, the brightly lit structure was immediately replaced by the dark walls of a tunnel, and then, rounding a curve, the train sped over the breadth of a rocky and forested valley, soaring along the face of a great concrete dam, and in the opposite direction, the Capitol's skyline standing proudly in the distance suddenly vanished from sight.

_Never, ever imagined seeing that._

She stood up, and cautiously walked over to the table nearby, eying a gathering of bottles of colored liquid with curiosity.

Her fingers lifted the glass cork from one filled with something purple, and she raised the bottle to her nose, blinking from a whiff of a strong beverage.

She lifted the neck to her lips, and a portion of the purple liquid ran into her mouth, suddenly attacking her taste buds with an unexpectedly sour, fruity taste.

A swallow and another mouthful later, she looked over at the door when Markell appeared through it and paused, eying her.

"...Well, I'm not surprised. Your room is two cars down this way."

Thumb pointing backward, he walked over, slowly smiling as she looked between him and the glass bottle in her hands.

"If you're drinking the sour stuff... Your tongue is going to burn tomorrow."

Stuffing the cork back into the neck and setting it back onto the counter daintily, she lifted one of the bottles of brown alcohol instead.

"That's better... Come with me. I want to make sure you know where to pass out for the night."

* * *

A dark orange sunset faded in the sky, following the sun down into the black silhouette of mountains and forest beyond. Staring out of the window of the train with her face pressed against the thick pane of glass, a repeating puff of heated breath spread and receded on the surface from Alyssa's nose. Rounding a curve, she leaned away from the window, and an empty glass bottle slipped off her lap and fell onto the carpet below, joining the other sitting nearby.

_Yeah... Not really feeling mmm, impressionable right now._

Her eyes wandered over to the other bottles in the distance, but a previously untouched arrangement of sweets sat near the alcohol, catching her eye.

_Ooh._

Standing to her feet, the subtle motions of the train caused her even further difficulty with balance as she wobbled over to the counter. Poring over the selection of small and decadent desserts, her hand found a slice of white cake, pulling it out of a small circle of different flavors. One large bite, and she leaned onto the counter, enjoying what she discovered to be a blend of white chocolate and cream cheese.

_Dreamy._

Reaching over, attempting to tug a napkin from a holder, the dispenser simply followed her hand along the surface, sliding along and falling off the counter to the floor. Glancing at the napkin wad in her hand and shaking her head as she set the bundle aside, her fingers drug onto one, pulling it aside and setting the cake slice onto another. After a moment, curiosity towed her eyes further to a small dish of brightly colored gelatin cubes, and she watched closely as they tremored from the slightest motion of the train. Fingers reaching up and lifting the platter from the metal prongs it sat upon, she shakily brought it down in front of her, watching as her own instability was transferred into the blobs.

_Only the weirdest food things ever..._

The door next to her suddenly slid open, and she she jumped, only to be startled again when the dish previously in her fingers dropped onto the polished stone top and broke. Face reddening as Markell stepped around the counter, her lips parted, but produced no words as he looked over the interior the coach.

"You remember where your bed is, right?"

She nodded, pushing the broken chunks of the platter together, and then watched as he walked over and picked up one of the jelly blobs and took a bite out of it.

"Just making sure."

She eyed him as he walked back out of the coach with a humored smile, and then blinked, looking at the counter her hands sat upon after the door shut again.

_No. Actually, I don't remember._

She exhaled, flicking one of the other jellies momentarily before picking it up and eating it.

_I'll just sleep in here anyway... Who cares._

Her hands slipped underneath the cake slice, and as she walked, she plucked a third, stubby bottle of alcohol from the metal stand, wandering back over to the seats, but then feeling obligated to sit cross legged on the floor. Pulling the glass cork out with her lips and spitting it aside, taking a drink out of the bottle, her face curled into grimacing cough and swallow.

_I don't._

* * *

Awakening to a hand clasped onto her shoulder, shaking her awake from the depths of her slumber, Alyssa's head rose from the blue carpet floor, and she blinked numerous times, finally looking up at the disturbing individual.

"Rough night?"

Rolling her eyes, unfurling from her curled position on the floor, Markell stood from his knee beside her as she groggily attempted to push herself upright. Finding her way up onto her feet, and he eyed her as she swayed, looking visibly pale in the morning light.

"You don't look so..."

His eyes followed her as she stumbled and fell right back onto the floor, sprawling onto the carpet.

She rolled over, and he exhaled, crouching down and helping her upright onto her bottom. Her head flopped down and her arm gripped his shoulder briefly, and he began to drag her along the carpet towards the door.

"Yoouuu are about to lose whatever you had last night."

"Uuunghh."

Helping her into the doorway of the bathroom on the end of the coach, she flopped over, arms propping themselves onto the stainless steel seat as she began staring down at the toilet.

_I'mmmm dying..._

Her insides churned, and with ripples of cold and buzzing sensations coursing through her skin, she knew exactly what was coming.

_The price of being a dr-uhh..._

Watching the young woman dry-heave repeatedly, Markell simply walked out of the room as Alyssa began to audibly vomit behind, rolling his eyes as he leaned against the wall just outside.

_Poor girl sucked down three whole bottles... Didn't stop to consider it for a moment._

Several agonizing minutes later, retch after retch, the liquor that went in, was forced right back out of her insides, and he sighed.

_Maybe she's never had anything back in Three. I don't suppose everyone there has money laying around for alcohol whenever they wish..._

* * *

Alyssa remained in a derelict lean against the wall of the bathroom, shaking, throat burning, and overall feeling quite pathetic. After a period of time and several openings of a nearby door, Markell appeared with a bundle of clothes, and set them onto the sink counter.

"Take a shower and you'll feel a lot better. Breakfast is in half an hour."

The door simply shut and latched behind, and her eyes wandered from the toilet, over to the shower stall she sat next to.

_What a horrid start to... This._

* * *

Showered, dressed, and almost awake, Alyssa groggily wandered down an offset corridor into a different coach, and Markell motioned her over to the dining table he sat at, piled high with visibly inviting food. Blasted with a variety of pleasant breakfast scents, she pulled one of the chairs out and sank into it, looking over the array of choices before her, only for a mug of coffee to appear on her empty plate.

"Start with toast... If you feel fine, go from there and have whatever. Last thing everybody in Three needs to see is you throwing up in front of them."

She blinked, dragging over a slice of toast, and then a spatula scoop of scrambled eggs, plopping them on top of it, before taking a bite out of the combination.

She waited briefly, but the only reaction was increased hunger after swallowing.

_Should be fine..._

Continuing to consume the starch and protein, her mentor casually checked his watch nearby.

"We'll be arriving at the station in... An hour and and a half."

She paused, swallowing.

"Should give you enough time... Eat up, and then head to your room. You need to be ready as soon as we arrive."

Her eyes sank down to her plate with arising realization.

_Wait, the station? That would mean home! District Three!_

* * *

Alyssa's heart beat hard as the train began to slow down, and she pushed herself up from her bedding, stepping into the side corridor of the car and immediately stopping to gaze out of a large window at the industrial skyline beyond.

_Ohh, District Three. You're here, and I'm here. Home. At last._

Leaning against the wall beneath the window, becoming adhered to the view outside of the glass, the express train coasted past several freight trains idling in a railroad yard, finally entering the brick and steel of the District's terminal, gliding to a magnetic halt alongside segmented concrete platforms.

_Empty platforms..._

"Here we are."

Turning from the window to Mark from his spoken appearance, she stood firm as he nudged her shoulder.

"Let's not keep them waiting. I hear they're quite excited to see you."

Moving along to the end of the coach, stepping through the opening door and down several large steps onto the platform, she immediately took in several great breaths of the air meeting her senses. The familiar scent of heavy industry greeted her nose, and she walked further forward, fingers curling around the edge of a riveted steel pillar, sturdily holding the platform's roof above their heads.

"I never... Thought I'd come back to this place."

Turning aside from a series of marching footsteps, she and Mark were joined by a squad of escorting peacekeepers, and with a look around, they began towards the weathered brickwork of the station.

_You say everyone's excited to see me... I haven't seen a single other human besides the soldiers._

Brow furrowing as they progressed straight through the structure, and outside to an awaiting car, she clambered into the vehicle, with Mark just behind. Eying her mentor with concern as the sedan's doors shut, rolling forward into motion with the low hum of electric motors, he finally noticed her expression.

"Where is everybody?"

Offering a simple smile, his head leaned closer.

"You'll see."

Winding along paved and cobblestone streets, heading further into the depths of the District's central residential zone, the continued absence of people kept her brow furrowed, until the vehicle finally drew to a concluding halt.

Lifting her arm from the door as it swung open, she stepped out of the vehicle, looked up at the backside of a vaguely familiar stone-brick building, and an arm went around her shoulder, leading her towards it. Upon approach, a weather-faded and hand-cut relief above the entrance displayed 'HALL OF JUSTICE', and she exhaled, realizing why she recognized the building as soon as she saw the plush crimson interior beyond the doorway.

_Yes. I've been in here before... Being declared an orphan, dropping from school for employment... And being reaped, I guess, but that's the most recent nightmare. Fighting for survival, after a couple years of trying to earn it in a factory... Nothing seems to change, does it?_

Glancing ahead as the main doors of the Justice Building were opened, she stepped forward onto the broad stone deck outside, suddenly finding herself overlooking a packed gathering of thousands of people.

_Oh, here's..._

Several individuals gasped and pointed, and then thousands of eyes and voices realized that she stood before them, and within seconds, a tidal wave of applause swept through the vertical-walled landscape, leaving her mouth increasingly agape as nearly every occupant in the massive square cheered and clapped and whistled in a cacophony of appreciation.

Her heart beat fiercely as she looked over the crowd.

_Well, I must still be human to experience this._

She waved her hand with increasing energy, and a smile of disbelief spread across her face.

_District Three! Everybody is happy to see me back. Two weeks ago, nobody knew me. And now everybody knows me by name. I survived the games. I am a victor. Their Victor. District Three's very own victor. The first in years. I outlasted everything the Capitol threw at me, and everybody that tried to kill me._

Gripping the railing before her with her idle hand, she leaned outward, exhaling with newfound pride.

_A lowly factory worker from District Three, won the Hunger Games. Maybe that is something they can be proud of._

* * *

Rung after rung, a young woman of eighteen years climbed the top of a long caged ladder, pulling herself up onto a small platform ringing the top of one of the tallest smokestacks in the industrial zone of District Three. Stepping around the catwalk with cautious, precise steps, watching as a column of steam and smoke silently billowed from the top of the steel and brick structure, she leaned forward against the tubular handrail, looking out over a maze of brick, steel and concrete. Factories and smokestacks, bridges and tenements, and the occasional cluster of freight trains were scattered across square miles of the busy industrial landscape.

An ongoing wisp of wind tossed her neck-length red hair, and she sighed, fingers curling tighter around the steel tubing keeping her upright.

_Two months ago, I was a tribute in Panem's fifty-seventh Hunger Games. I found friendship and an ally, and then lost both in the brutal fight for survival. I murdered. I stole. And somehow, with everybody trying to kill me, I survived. Now, back home, my world has changed. I am wealthy. I no longer starve. I live in an empty neighborhood of large homes with my mentor, and at one point, I had absolutely nothing to do. So I went back to work. Not for money, but simply to pass the time. Three days a week of developing high-efficiency machinery and electrical technology, just to keep myself busy. Almost as laughable as passing off money to the less fortunate around me..._

Following the progression of two black crows, gliding along the moving swirls of air over rooftops, she stared at the airborne creatures until they vanished, descending to the land below.

_...Mark doesn't like it, but he turns the other way when I venture into the depths of the land and spread my wealth. Ah, rather, the Capitol's wealth that they're giving to me until I die. Reparations for threatening my life for their entertainment. However one wants to describe it._

Her eyes followed the weathered colors of a freight train as it departed a siding, only to enter another less than a mile away.

_In four months, as I've been told, the so-called Victory tour will begin. Visiting the other eleven districts, and thanking them for sending their kids to die. A special kind of nightmare to keep everyone scared and angry until the fifty-eighth games come along._

She looked out into the horizon as the sun drifted behind a fragment of broken grey clouds.

_In the meantime, I'm going to find Oliver's family. Talk to them. Tell them I plan to help, since their son is a large part of why I'm here, alive. From there... I just have to figure out how I can give them a ton of money without anybody noticing. Maybe then, if that all works, I can go on and live my life in peace... When I'm not mentoring future tributes, and watching them go off and die._

_Hopefully, none of them will make the same errors I did... They won't survive no matter what, if they do._

* * *

**END.**

* * *

_**Thanks for reading!** _


End file.
